COTT: Husband and Wife Team up to Write Christian Fiction

Danny and Wanda Pelfrey are longtime writers of non-fiction books in the educational and inspiration markets. They have for most of their lives been avid readers of mystery/suspense. AS A SHIELD and a previous mystery title are the result of a desire to entertain themselves and others as well as drive home important spiritual messages. Their passion is now “mysteries with a message.”

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AS A SHIELD is one of four planned Davis Morgan mysteries set in a small North Georgia town. Davis, a pastor for almost twenty-five years, returns to his hometown after the death of his wife, to operate a rare and used bookstore. He is promptly appointed chaplain of the small police department and recruited by city officials to write a history of his home town. Mystery and romance seem always to be lurking around the corner for the popular bookseller.The reoccurring characters such as Charley Nelson, young police officer; Amy Morgan, Davis’s young daughter who is an English teacher; her roommate Deidre, who Davis is more and more drawn to as time passes; Miss Helen, the local historian and a host of others add to the fun and excitement.

 A visit to little Adairsville, Georgia will surely be a memorable event for anyone who chooses to drop-in. In AS A SHIELD, Davis, through his encounters with two strange villains, comes to experience for himself the truth of Psalm 5:12, “For surely, O Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.”

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About the Authors: Danny and Wanda Pelfrey are a husband/wife team who in the past were active writers of non-fiction material, having, between them, cranked out several books. They are both graduates of Point University and Danny has a Masters from Kentucky Christian University. Danny has spent most of his adult life as a pastor and Wanda as a teacher.Their interest at present lies in the creation of mysteries with a message.

Danny and Wanda are the proud parents of two daughters and five grandchildren. They reside in a little Cape Cod style cottage in the small town in North Georgia that is the setting for their mysteries.

About the Book: Davis Morgan, having left the ministry after the death of his wife, returns to Adairsville, Georgia, his hometown. There he operates a used and rare bookstore while being appointed chaplain of the police department. He and Charley, a young policeman, after discovering the body of a tattooed man find themselves in a serious battle to bring justice to two strange villains who are threating the safety of Davis's daughter. While all this is going on, Davis is struggling with interpreting his relationship with a young history teacher who happens to be his daughter's roommate.

Guest Author: Elle E. Kay

Today is a Beautiful Day

Today is a beautiful day. The sun is coming up through the woods behind my house. When I look out front, I can see that the daffodils are beginning to open. The grass is turning green again. I can hear the birds singing their lovely songs. I can choose to focus on all these wonderful things. I can choose to trust God and enjoy the gifts He’s provided.

My stomach issues are bothering me this morning. A migraine is destroying my concentration. My son came home upset that he and his girlfriend had another fight. I can choose to focus on all these negative things. I can choose to be miserable and wallow in the difficulties of life in this world.

Which would you focus on?

Stella chooses God. She chooses life. And she focuses on her blessings. I want to be like her. To focus on God when everything around me falls apart. I want to be like the birds and sing songs to the Lord.  Life isn’t easy for me. I don’t think it’s easy for anybody. We all suffer different things. Yet, we can choose joy anyway. We can remind ourselves to spread the joy of the Lord instead of the pain of the world.

I recently finished my major edits for Claudia, the second book in the Edinsville Series. It is now in the hands of my capable editor and several beta readers. I struggled with the edits for that book. I wrote most of it in a month, but put it aside for a year and half before I finally sat back down to finish it. I don’t know why I procrastinated on editing Claudia, but what I do know is that I can celebrate the accomplishment of finally sending it off to the editor, or I can focus on my failure to do it sooner.

We have that choice with almost everything in life. Often I choose wrong, but today with the sun shining, the birds singing, and the flowers blooming, I’m choosing joy. I’m going to enjoy the blessings of the day and focus on them. I’m going to lift my voice in song unto the Lord. I will praise the Lord, focusing on the blessings.

I hope you will join me.

Psalms 146:2 (KJV)—While I live will I praise the LORD: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.

About STELLA (Edinsville Series, Book 1):

Heart-pounding suspense meet heart-warming faith and romance as Stella faces an evil beyond her control. Holding on to a thread of faith, she follows it home to Pennsylvania’s Endless Mountain region, where she meets Jason. A complication she’d rather not get entangled with. Stella must decide if she will let her circumstances destroy her, or if she will find the good and praise the Lord through the downpour.

This novel tackles the difficult subjects of rape, pregnancy, and kidnapping through a lens of faith and hope.

About Elle E Kay

Elle E. Kay lives on a farmette in the Back Mountain region of Pennsylvania. She lives with her husband, dog, and farm animals. She enjoys playing with goats and sheep.

Elle is a born-again Bible believing Christian. Stella is her debut novel. The next book in the Edinsville Series, Claudia is expected to be released this year. Elle writes children’s books under the pen name, Ellie Mae Kay. 

Guest Author: Donna Schlachter

Writing What You Don’t Know

We’ve all heard that we should write about what we know. But what if you find out about a project that you don’t know anything about but would like to learn?

I discovered since I started writing seriously that I love history. I met up with Mary Davis at an ACFW conference  and asked her what she was working on. She said she and three other authors were putting together a proposal on the Pony Express. I said if there was an opening, I’d love to join.

I told my husband about this meeting, and he said, “Sounds like an excuse for a road trip.” So I researched the Pony Express and learned that the only station in Colorado was in Julesburg. So we picked a long weekend and set out. Along the way, we stopped at the visitor center at Sterling, Colorado. I asked if they had information about the Pony Express, and she showed me the couple of pieces they had. She also said I should talk with the past president of the Colorado Pony Express Association. She called him, Gary came down, and we spent an hour talking about the Pony Express.

Prior to this trip, before I even knew if I’d be able to get in on Mary’s collection, I’d visited the library and read a bunch of stuff about the Pony Express. I’d researched online, and I’d ordered a couple of books from Amazon.

A month later, Mary Davis emailed and said one of the ladies had to drop out and now there was an opening. Because I’d done the research, I was ready to submit a proposal.

What I’ve learned:

1. Writing only what I know boxes me in. Writing what I’d like to know allows me to learn and explore. I don’t need to be an expert; I just need to know enough to sound credible. If I don’t know a particular detail, I can always look it up online or find a book with the information.
2. Writers conferences are great places to connect with other authors as well as with agents and editors.
3. The more I learn about a subject, the more excited I get, and the easier it is to write about it.
4. No matter the topic, there is a book, a museum, or an expert out there.
5. Folks love talking about their jobs. Plan to interview someone.
6. Research the kind of museum you’d like to visit—many have virtual tours if you can’t physically visit. 

About the Book

This is a 9-in-1 novella collection from Barbour Books centered on the Pony Express, which ran from April 1860 through November 1861. The Pony Express already seems to be a romantic snippet of Americana, and so it seemed to make sense to write a collection of historical romance set on the trail. My story, Echoes of the Heart, features a mail order bride responding under an assumed name, a crippled station master who thinks no woman will want him, and their search for a future—together or separately.

About Donna

Donna lives in Denver with husband Patrick, her first-line editor and biggest fan. She writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts. She is a hybrid publisher who has published a number of books under her pen name and  under her own name. Her current release, Echoes of the Heart, a 9-in-1 novella collection titled "Pony Express Romance Collection" released April 1. Donna is also a ghostwriter and editor of fiction and non-fiction, and judges in a number of writing contests. She will be teaching an online course for American Christian Fiction Writers in June 2017, “Don’t let your subplots sink your story”. Donna loves history and research, and travels extensively for both.

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Echoes of the Heart

Guest Post: June Foster

June Foster

Who Do You Think You Are?

I love to write characters who find healing in their lives after discovering their identity in Christ. Janie Littleton in my latest novel, Restoration of the Heart, has always lived in the shadow of her beautiful, older sister. Janie is a bit overweight, wears glasses, and isn't exactly pleased about her appearance. No guy would ever find her attractive, so why bother to lose those extra pounds. When the state of Idaho hires her as historian to oversee the restoration of a hundred-year-old mining town, she accepts.

Luke Chamberlain owns the construction company hired to restore the 1890s historical buildings at Silver Cliff Ghost Town. Though now a Christian, Luke once dabbled in the world, including his engagement to the gorgeous woman crowned Miss Idaho two years before. He saw her narcissism and now wants nothing more to do with the shallow lifestyle she represents. When he meets the godly woman Janie Littleton, he sees beauty instead of a Plain Jane, as she's labeled herself.

When Luke proclaims his love, Janie believes he's merely playing with her heart. Surely when their project is finished, Luke will return to the big city of Coeur d' Alene and forget all about her.

Janie reads her Bible but has never taken seriously 1 Samuel 16:7 where Samuel is choosing Saul's replacement for king of Israel. "But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, the Lord looks at the heart."

Part of the inspiration for my heroine in Restoration of the Heart came from something that happened years ago. Way before I wrote my first novel, I used to teach elementary kids. I participated in a program with the local university in my city in which they placed a student teacher in my classroom.

One of my student teachers was so gorgeous, she could've won a Miss America contest. But because of some personal issues in her life, she became quite difficult with which to work. Some days, in my own frustration, I saw her, not as beautiful, but unattractive. I don't mean to speak ill of her, but I perceived the disagreeable behavior, not the outer appearance.

On the other hand, I've known others whom the world probably wouldn't label as attractive but were beautiful in my eyes because I looked into their souls—that part of them where our Lord dwells.

In many ways, I, too, think like Janie. I'd never make it into a Cover Girl ad or a Ralph Lauren commercial, but my confidence comes from knowing how God sees me as He looks upon my spirit redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus.


About RESTORATION OF THE HEART

Though a Christian, Luke Chamberlain ignored his values and indulged in his beautiful fiancé's world of alcohol, parties, and nights at her apartment. After rededicating his life to the Lord, he vows never to fall into the lifestyle again. When the state of Idaho's Tourism Department offers his construction company the contract to renovate Silver Cliff, an 1890s silver mining ghost town, he accepts.

Janie Littleton studied history in college because life in the past is simpler than the uncomfortable reality of the present. With her extra pounds, eye glasses, and mousy brown hair, no man would find her attractive. When she's offered the job of project historian at the restoration of Silver Cliff, she accepts. But as Luke Chamberlain shows an interest in her, she doubts his sincerity. To make matters worse, someone claiming to be the miner who founded Silver Cliff in 1890 intimidates her with frightening midnight visits.

Can Luke convince Janie he's in love with the godly woman she is? Can Janie hold onto her faith as she's harassed by frightening appearances of old Ezra Barclay who died a hundred years ago?


Purchase this book

About the Author

An award-winning author, June Foster is a retired teacher with a BA in education and MA in counseling. June's book Give Us This Day was a finalist in EPIC's eBook awards and a finalist in the National Readers Choice Awards for best first book. Ryan's Father was one of three finalists in the published contemporary fiction category of the Oregon Christian Writers Cascade Writing Contest and Awards. Deliver Us was a finalist in COTT's Laurel Awards. June has written four novels for Desert Breeze Publishing. The Bellewood Series, Give Us This Day, As We Forgive, and Deliver Us, and Hometown Fourth of July. Ryan's Father is published by WhiteFire Publishing. Red and the Wolf, a modern day retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, is available from Amazon.com. The Almond Tree series, For All Eternity, Echoes From the Past, What God Knew, and Almond Street Mission are available at Amazon.com. June enjoys writing stories about characters who overcome the circumstances in their lives by the power of God and His Word. Recently June has seen publication of Christmas at Raccoon Creek, Lavender Fields Inn and Restoration of the Heart. Visit June at junefoster.com.

Review: The Marriage Pact (Michelle Richmond)

A mysterious wedding gift from a wealthy, influential client. Gotta be a good thing, right?

Well…not necessarily.

Jake and Alice are honored when a  key client of the law firm Alice works for accepts Her offhand invitation to their wedding. They’re intrigued by the unusual gift from that same guest—a membership to an exclusive, secret club called  the Pact. But the couple soon discover a frightening dark side to what seems at first to be a delightful group of elite members, all focused on furthering the institution of marriage... making it all that it should be.

But the Pact’s idea of perfect unity could cost Alice and Jake everything…including their lives.

This novel was a side trip into a different genre for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed the journey. A little iffy in the beginning, as I adjusted to the first-person presentation, but within a few pages, I was completely intrigued, and had to know more about whatever situation the hero appeared to be in. The author did a great job of making me care about the characters, their relationship, and what the Pact would mean to that relationship…good or bad. Other than the occasional use of language I would prefer not to see, I love Michelle Richmond’s writing style, and look forward to more from this new-to-me author.

Guest Author: Denise Weimer

Denise Weimer

God is Near and Ever Faithful

Both the modern heroine in my new novel, Witch: Book Three of The Restoration Trilogy, and the historical character from its Colonial-era back story, have gone through something very hard that left a stain of darkness on their lives. Both women question if not only might the men they love abandon them, but God Himself.

We all go through times where our faith feels weak or dry, we can’t hear God’s voice or feel His presence, or trials just keep hitting us. Sometimes sin in our lives can separate us from God. Any of these things can make it feel like God is far away. But there is no sin or circumstance that can separate us from God’s love and forgiveness. All we have to do is cry out to Him. Even in times when we don’t feel like He is close, He is. Our faith is NOT based on our feelings. It is based on the truth God gives us in Scripture, and here is what He says:

Lamentations 3:22-23: “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”

1 John 1:9: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Deuteronomy 31:6: “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

James 4:8a: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”

Romans 8:38-39: “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

About the Books:

Introducing The Restoration Trilogy: When Jennifer Rushmore accepts a brooding bachelor’s job offer to act as coordinator for the restoration of his family’s historic doctor’s house (White), apothecary (Widow) and log cabin (Witch) in a rural Georgia community, little does she know it’s her own heart that will undergo the greatest renovation. Three stories. Three centuries. Three lessons on the healing of the heart. And one buried mystery that threatens their redemption.

Witch: Having restored Michael Johnson’s ancestors’ house and apothecary shop and begun applying the lessons of family and forgiveness unearthed from the past, Jennifer Rushmore expects to complete her first preservation job with the simple relocation of a log home. But as her crew reconstructs the 1787 cabin, home to the first Dunham doctor, attacks on those involved throw suspicion on neighbors and friends alike. And while Jennifer has trusted God and Michael with the pain of her past, it appears Michael’s been keeping his own secrets. Will she use a dream job offer from Savannah as an escape, or will a haunting tale from a Colonial diary convince her to rely on the faithfulness of his love?

About the Author:

Denise Weimer holds a journalism degree with a minor in history from Asbury University. A former magazine writer, she is the author of romantic novella REDEEMING GRACE, The Georgia Gold Series (SAUTEE SHADOWS, THE GRAY DIVIDE, THE CRIMSON BLOOM, and BRIGHT AS GOLD - winner of the 2015 John Esten Cooke Award for outstanding Southern literature) and The Restoration Trilogy (WHITE, WIDOW and WITCH). Denise is a wife and swim mom of two daughters who always pauses for old houses, coffee and chocolate!

Guest Author: Kimberly Rose Johnson

I'm happy to welcome Kimberly Rose Johnson to Chirp 'N Chatter. Today, Kimberly brings a comforting devotion on a topic we all need to be reminded of now and then. Please welcome our guest with lots of comments. Let's chirp and chatter about Kimberly's post, her book, or just questions or comments you might have regarding a relevant topic.

Author Kimberly Rose Johnson

You Are Not Alone

Kimberly Rose Johnson

Have you ever felt abandoned and alone? I think it’s safe to say that we’ve all felt like this at least once in our lives. But when we are at our lowest the Lord is at His greatest, if we allow Him to be.

The Bible tells us in Deuteronomy 31:8 to not be afraid, that He will never leave us. Isaiah 41:10 says He will give us strength and help. Time and again He has proven this in my own life.

In my book Designing Love, there is a character that is arrested for a crime she didn’t commit. She had no one to turn to for help. Her attorney was a no-show and her friends distanced themselves from her. Talk about feeling abandoned and alone! In her helplessness, she reaches out to the Lord for comfort and strength.

Bad stuff happens. The Lord never said it wouldn’t, but He does promise to help us through it. He never fails. He is always there for us. Dig into His word, seek Him and He will be there.

About DESIGNING LOVE:

Someone is framing Sierra. Can Spencer Preston discover the true criminal before he loses her? 

Sierra Robbins, single mother and interior design assistant, wants to provide a stable home for her teenage son and become a successful interior designer. She’s well on her way to both goals when she agrees to house sit a home in Sunriver, Oregon. It couldn’t be more perfect. She’ll be close to her job at Belafonte Designs while living rent-free. But things don’t go as expected beginning on day one when a police officer responds to the alarm they set off at the house. Was that alarm a sign of trouble to come? 

Spencer Preston, lives for his job as a police officer in Sunriver, but when he responds to a house alarm and finds Sierra and her son there everything changes. Suddenly he finds himself torn between the upholding the law and protecting the woman he believes is innocent.  

About the Author:

Kimberly Rose Johnson married her college sweetheart and lives in the Pacific Northwest. From a young child Kimberly has been an avid reader. That love of reading fostered a creative mind and led to her passion for writing.

She especially loves romance and writes contemporary romance that warms the heart and feeds the soul.

Kimberly holds a degree in Behavioral Science from Northwest University in Kirkland, Washington. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers.

You can sign up for Kimberly's newsletter via her website at: http://kimberlyrjohnson.com/index.html

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