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Friday, March 25, 2016

For Those Looking for a Historical Love Story ;) (By the Stars Blog Tour)



 Hello again lovely followers! March is a special month, because not only is my birthday in March, but I'm helping out with two special blog tours (both debut novels)! Today we're celebrating the release of By the Stars by Lindsay B. Ferguson. When you get done reading this post, you might just want to check it out.

About By the Stars



He was lost. Lost in those deep brown, beautiful eyes. Then, as clear as day, Cal heard a voice inside his head: "That is the girl you are going to marry."

When Cal finally gets a chance with Kate, the girl he's loved since grade school, their easy friendship quickly blossoms into a meaningful romance. But World War II soon cuts their time far too short, and Cal prepares to part from her - possibly for good. With Kate's memory willing him on, Cal must put his trust in God to survive if he hopes to ever return to her. Inspired by a true story, By the Stars is a romance that stands the test of time and the most intense obstacles.


"By the Stars is an enchanting tale…of faith, destiny, and the life-changing power of enduring love." -Lindsay Maxfield, editor, Deseret Media Companies

"Present and past meld together in this richly crafted story…As I finished the last page, I closed the cover, hugged the book close to my chest, and sighed with contentment as my new friend Cal finished telling me his story, and oh, what a story." -Kelly Dearth, founder of DeliciousReads.com

Get the book here.

Read reviews or add it to your GoodReads list.


 About the Author



Lindsay Ferguson worked as a PR and marketing writer for a computer software company for several years before resigning to focus on raising her family. When she felt the itch to attempt novel writing, a fascination with history created a natural inclination toward historical fiction, with a romantic flare, of course. She lives in a suburb of Salt Lake City with her husband and four children. By the Stars is her first novel. Visit her online at www.lindsaybferguson.com.

If you like love stories, historical fiction, with an LDS flavor, check out By the Stars.

You can also see the other blogs participating in the tour here.

Monday, March 21, 2016

Social Circles and What it Means to be Popular



All through my teenage years I did dance (jazz and ballet). I was never the star of the show. I wasn't one of the "best" or the "most talented," and when I tried out for company, I didn't make it. I wasn't a horrible dancer either. I mean, I got pretty good in a lot of ways, but I never made it to the cream of the crop. I remember watching and looking up to the girls who were more talented than me. At my studio, they were popular.

Now, I hesitate to use that word because it often has all this negative connotation attached to it. Often it's associated with arrogance, being stuck up, and not including others. For my post, I don't mean that. I mean "popular" as in "well-liked" and "well-known." So these girls were popular at my studio. Very talented. Great examples to look to.

Monday, March 14, 2016

Crafting Your Character's Harmartia


Hello lovely followers! Today's post on fatal flaws (your character's harmartia) comes from a guest, Kaki Olsen, who had her debut novel, Swan and Shadow: A Swan Lake Story, published by Cedar Fort last week! Everyone celebrate with her! This post is part of the book's blog tour. See the schedule of other blogs that are celebrating Swan and Shadow.

About Swan and Shadow: A Swan Lake Story:


Aislin is cursed. A regular college student at night and a swan during the day, Aislin can only break the curse by finding her true love. But when her beloved discovers the truth, will his fear override their love? This modern adaptation of Swan Lake will help you discover what love really means. Get Swan and Shadow.
 

Monday, March 7, 2016

Writing with #$@%&* Profanity


(The best part of the headline is that the symbols don't make sense)



When I was in 9th grade, we read Fahrenheit 451 in reading groups. I loved the book. It's a great classic, dystopian sci-fi. Since we were reading it in groups, we had to read it aloud, and I remember my teacher saying we were allowed to read the swear words if we wanted to, but we were also allowed to skip them. He told us though, that as we read, to think about if it changed the meaning of the what we read.

I didn't read the swear words. Today, I still don't like profanity. I don't swear. But I remember wanting to be able to say that cutting out the swear words didn't effect the meaning of the story. After all, they were swear words. But the truth was, it did.

I know some of my followers are reading this, thinking that this post is a little silly, and they use profanity all the time in their writing. Others reading this may argue that authors only use profanity when they have a weak vocabulary and can't find better words to express themselves. That can be true, but the reality is, that's just not always the case. Making that statement is an over-generalization. There are actually more sophisticated reasons for using it, as I'll explain. But whatever your opinion on profanity is, I promise you'll learn something new about swearing by the end of this post--and how to use that knowledge to your benefit.