HER HOPE DISCOVERED: A Behind-the-Scenes Peek

Recently I shared a little of the book launch process with you.

Today I thought you might enjoy learning a little more about Her Hope Discovered, book one in my Welcome to Ruby series.

It’s a bitter-cold day here in the Ozarks, but let’s warm up with a cup of coffee and draw back the curtain on our little fictional town where there’s always pie and a smile to warm us. (Click-to-Tweet)

Imagine, if you will, a quaint, cozy community wrapped in fall and nestled within the Ozarks’ foothills.

There’s a smattering of churches and well-lit homes, the Come and Get It Diner, Hattie’s Hair Care, and Nora and Ned’s General Market. A little farther down Main Street, we see Ernie’s Automotive and Marshall Reality. A few streets over is the local school, and out on the fringe of town, Sunset Meadows, a retirement village.

At the center of it all is Ruby, Missouri’s heartbeat—her citizens—our friends and neighbors who live there, good souls who’ve never met a stranger.

These quirky, lovable characters, despite their faults and foibles, easily endear themselves to those who visit and those who decide to stay for a while…or forever.

There’s Sam Packard, the town carpenter, keeper of secrets and doting daddy to two motherless little girls.

Fancy-mannered, new resident Charla Winthrop who’s ditched personal and professional obligations in favor of solitude and independence.

Edwin Ramsey, pillar of faith and mission-minded prayer warrior.

Delia Scroggins or “Aunt Delia,” as coined by the Packard family—heart-mender and kisses of boo-boos.

Town deputy and beloved local Horace J. Sapp, and Hattie our favorite hairdresser, Horace’s better half for twenty-five years and counting.

Jerry Marshall, local real estate agent and his wife Ann who welcome all with open arms.

Across the way, we spy Ida Mae Hoscutt, big-hearted and down-to-earth proprietress of the Come and Get It Diner—the locals’ favorite hang-out.

There are others.

Good folks like Nora and Ned Brewster, owners of Nora and Ned’s General Market, who help patrons shop for everything from A to Z.

Ernie of Ernie’s Automotive who knows his way around a vehicle like a surgeon does the golf course—er, operating room.

Wave with me, please, at Pastor Bill and Sister Sharon, the preacher and his wife who’ll bless your socks off…or at least offer to wash them for you!

And heavenly days, let’s not forget the cream in our coffee. The One who adds flavor to life and invites us to savor it.

Her Hope Discovered, book one in my Welcome to Ruby series, is a story of love, longing, and second chances. It’s about imperfect people facing real-life problems, perhaps, in a kinder, gentler season on the fringe of your own hometown and mine. (Click-to-Tweet)

I started writing this series at a time I felt we needed more “good” in this world. I find it’s as true now as it was then.

While some say fiction is merely an escape from reality—that it’s wasted, mindless drivel in light of real-life disasters—I would agree maybe that’s how it seems. And then I’d respond with this. (Click-to-Tweet)

Is anything that draws us a little closer to God and makes us believe in humanity’s goodness ever really wasted?

Is immersing ourselves in fictional towns and characters, while weighing solutions to tangible problems, really mindless?

Are laughing and crying our way through a book less meaningful than the catharsis the evening news would offer?

Are living and breathing the same thing?

It depends on that word. Perspective.

But to me, you can’t have one without the other. And for those who choose to?

That’s why I wrote this book.

Her. Hope. Discovered.

Think about it.

 

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SHARING IS CARING

 

Why I wrote the story of my heart and the little series that could.

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When folks say fiction is wasted drivel, I’d ask them three things.

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How does reading make you feel?

Has a great story made a difference in your life?

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Do you need a little hope and a whole lot of lovin’?

Then please join me as we savor our new friends’ sorrows and successes in a community where offbeat is perfect and mishaps and mayhem never tasted so good!

Get ready! Her Hope Discovered releases in print on December 15, 2018! OR you can pre-order the e-book NOW (at a considerable discount) and it will be auto-delivered to your Kindle on December 31st, 2018 just in time to ring in the new year! How perfect is that? Find out more about the story here.

Much Love and Many Blessings,