Awakening Sun - Now Available!

I’m excited to release Awakening Sun, the third and last book in my Wings of the Dawn young adult suspense trilogy.

Teaser

The story opens with a seemingly final sentence for the trilogy's villain Neil DeWitt and a fairly simple case for its heroine Abby Grant to solve. Yet things are not as they seem, and what appears to be a standard clinical drug trial turns into something much more complicated and dangerous.

Theme

Second chances. Are they possible? At what cost? Abby and friends face some of their darkest moments yet. Through them, they realize both the intense risk and reward of giving second chances.

Your Turn

The paperback is now available at Amazon.com. Kindle readers, stay tuned! It will be converted into a Kindle version as well.

Share the news with your friends. Then, make coffee, find a cozy chair, and let me know how long it takes you to finish this last installment.

Enjoy!

Wings of the Dawn Trilogy: Book 3, Coming Soon!

Photo Credit: Vincent_AF via Flickr Creative Commons
 

Is Neil locked away for good?

Are Abby’s adventures over now that she’s started college?

And what has that airplane-mechanic Andrew been up to in her absence?

Book 3 picks up midway into Abby’s first semester. All seems ordinary until a classmate’s freak accident draws her into an investigation that spirals far beyond the boundaries of her college campus, her country’s borders – and her comfort zone.

The third book in the Wings of the Dawn trilogy is in production with an anticipated release date this fall. New adventures and twists are in store.

Check back for more details and updates in the weeks and months ahead!

FCWC Recognizes Wings of the Dawn

Saturday night was the FCWC (Florida Christian Writer’s Conference) awards banquet. Much to my delight, the directors announced that first place for the mystery/suspense/thriller fiction category went to Captive Beneath the Bahamian Sky, the first book in my Wings of the Dawn series.

To participate in the writing contest, fiction writers submitted a one paragraph description of their novel plus the first 2,000 words. (The contest was open to self-published works, allowing me to submit my first book for consideration.) Depending on the number of submissions, the directors awarded first, second and/or third place. In the mystery/suspense/thriller category, three writers received recognition.

Like a sponge, I soaked up everything I could from the conference, speakers and workshops. Is a conference worth the investment? Without question, the answer is absolutely!

Over the next several weeks, I’ll share with you what I learned at this conference – including the insights I gleamed into the market role and perceptions of self-publishing. Do publishing houses consider self-published works? Do agents represent self-published authors?

Check back soon.

The Story behind My Cover

“Are you awake, Sis?”

I was, but I didn’t want to be. The minute my toes touched the cold, wooden floor of our family cottage, my first impulse was to retract them back underneath the warm comforter.

But I had promised my brother I would go fishing with him before sunrise. I pulled on a pair of blue jeans, slipped into an old pair of flip flops and grabbed my jacket. Then, I helped my brother pull our life vests and paddles out of the shed before starting for the beach.

The grass was cool and damp with dew as we made our way to the shoreline. The first light peeked behind the mountains that formed the backdrop to Lake Winona. Radiation fog danced across the water’s surface, and the gentle colors of dawn beckoned the start of a new day.

My brother pulled our burnt orange canoe from the bank and slid it into the water.

“Hop in,” he said.

“Wait,” I said. “Just look at that.”

My brother paused to take in the grace and beauty of the scene before us. He grinned, “Aren’t you glad I asked you to come along?”

I ignored him and fumbled for my camera. Never before had I seen such a breathtaking sunrise.

I honestly don’t remember if we caught any fish that morning, but the picture I took has been a favorite of mine ever since. And years later, it made its way onto the cover of my second book.

A friend and talented graphic artist combined stock art elements with my picture to design the cover of Secrets Beyond Lake Winona’s Shore. And yes, there are some “true life” experiences from my childhood at the cottage that slipped into my story as well.

Lake Winona is truly a testament to the handiwork of the Creator God. My hope is that my story will be pleasing to Him and afford my readers with the enjoyment of engaging in a Christian fiction mystery staged around this beautiful shore.

New Release: Wings of the Dawn, Book 2

I'm thrilled to announce the second book in my Wings of the Dawn Series, Secrets Beyond Lake Winona's Shore.

It's immediately available through CreateSpace on my page. Look for it on Amazon in the next few days. I'll share a press release with more information in the near future.

I don't believe in resting on laurels, but I'd like to reflect for just a moment. Ecclesiastes 7:8 says:

"Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit."

One of my professors in college used to challenge us as students to "finish well." After all, anyone can start strong, but finishing takes perseverence and hard work.

"...and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit."

To be patient is to endure in spite of weariness, to press on in spite of setbacks. Yes, I am proud of my book, but not vain (or at least, I hope not). Actually, I can rather relate to Anne Bradstreet in her poem "The Author to Her Book," which begins this way:

"Thou ill-formed offspring of my feeble brain..."

And yet, it is my desire that God take my writing, even if it is but the "ill-formed offspring of my feeble brain," and use it in such a way that would bring glory to Him and enjoyment to those who read it.

 

Book 2: Coming Soon!

I apologize in advance for neglecting my blog.

But I do have a good excuse, well, as good an excuse as any. The second book in my Wings of the Dawn series, Secrets Beyond Lake Winona's Shore, is in the final proofing stage; and if all goes as planned, will be available for sale on amazon.com either later this month or early next.

For the last several weeks, I have spent most of my spare time proofreading and proofreading and proofreading.

But that's not what readers care about, so I'll get off my "I've been working really hard" soapbox.

What is book 2 about?

Abby has just ended her summer internship with her detective Uncle Rick Benton - the job that got off to such a rough start in book 1. She's looking ahead to her freshman year of college when her brothers and their friends Matt and Andrew Baxter surprise Abby and the Marshall sisters with plans for a week's vacation on Lake Winona in the lakes region of New Hampshire.

Yet she no sooner arrives in New Hampshire than her uncle leaves her an unsettling voicemail, and Abby is torn between telling the truth about his suspicions to her brothers and friends - and not wanting to worry them.

She stumbles upon a mysterious old letter and suddenly finds herself face to face with her nemesis Neil DeWitt, entangled in a mystery surrounding a Cold War diary, a missing dossier and a kidnapped treasure hunter.

Can Abby solve the scrambled clues before time runs out? Beyond that, can she find the courage to confront her dilemmas and begin to forgive the one who has wronged her? What weighs in the balance is worth more than even the secrets that lie somewhere beyond Lake Winona's shore.

How did I go about self-publishing book 2?

We'll talk about that in another post.