Featured Author: Karen Kingsbury

Superb author Karen Kingsbury is a New York Times best selling author and she just announced that two of her books are being made into Hallmark movies. Her newest novel, Chasing Sunsets, released last month to rave reviews. 

In 2011 I asked Karen what advice she would give to new authors, and her mother sent this along: 

"Thanks for asking about writing tips. Karen has put together a list of "Writing Tips" on her web site. We have heard from many writers that these were helpful to them. Click HERE for her tips.

Additionally, if you search the Internet under "Christian writing tips" loads of information comes up from many well known authors. There are also online writer's associations such as the Christian Writer's Guild - which will lead you through a course that helps you write your book. If you're interested in this, that's something Karen recommends. It is run by a good friend of hers - author Jerry Jenkins.

Here's another author's blog with writing tips: http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/blog/ by Randy Ingemanson

Here's a website that has very good information on how to submit a manuscript to an agent: http://www.wordserveliterary.com/
Then click on "Submission Guidelines".

Karen didn't struggle to get published like most authors do. A New York agent discovered her because she was a news reporter for the LA Times and was covering a trial. The agent asked her if she could make the story into a book and she did and received a four book contract from a big publisher. The rest is history as they say!

When you get time please stop by Karen's Facebook page. Karen posts there almost every day! There's a link on her website.

"Unlocked" which is Karen's new "stand alone" book released on October 12th. You can also watch her new talk show on her website. Karen interviews those who have inspired this story. She also introduces "Cody Coleman" who is a character in her "Above The Line Series"!

Thanks so much again for your letter, and for taking time to share your thoughts."

Blessings,

Anne Kingsbury
Karen's Mother and Assistant

www.karenkingsbury.com 

Featured Author: Marta Perry

Marta Perry realized she wanted to be a writer at the age of eight. With over fifty romantic fiction books under her belt, her talent shines through in every book she publishes. Her books have won numerous awards, including an Rita Award in 2012. Marta is now penning a new series, the first titled The Forgiven: Keepers of the Promise. 

I wrote to Marta in 2011 and asked what advice she would give to upcoming authors. Here's what she had to say: 

"When I was getting started in writing, the internet didn't exist, I hadn't heard about organizations like RWA, and I'd never even met another oddball person like me! Aspiring writers today have so many wonderful opportunities to network with other writers and to learn from the best, and I would urge them to take full advantage of that. Seek out groups, either in your community or online, who have the same aspirations you do, and who have the same level of commitment. (Beware the group which turns into a coffeeklatch, talking about writing instead of actually doing it!) I think it's also helpful if the other folks in the group are at your skill and experience level or a little farther along. Remember, you need honest critiquing and encouragement, not criticism.

Above all, aspiring writers must read, read, read, especially in the genre in which you want to write. Know what the classics are; know what the bestsellers are; know what's selling now, not what sold last year.

And write, write, write. It's my personal belief that all of us have a certain amount of dreck that we have to write before we can get down to the real stuff--the things that only we can write, the stories only we can tell."

Wishing each of you all the best in your own writing journeys,

Marta Perry
www.martaperry.com
www.booksbymartaperry.blogspot.com

Get I Have a Secret .99 THIS WEEKEND ONLY!

March 29-30, you can get I Have a Secret (Sloane Monroe Series #3) for .99!!!

 

After the sale, the price will go up $4.99, but this weekend only, you can save $4.00.

 

 

4.4 stars out of 5 on 138 Amazon Reviews

 

Use the following links to purchase on your eReader:

 

Amazon

 

Barnes & Noble

 

Kobo

 

iBooks (iTunes Bookstore)

 

I Have a Secret Product Description

 

No one knows the value of keeping a secret more than former high school prom king Doug Ward. But after washing the past twenty years down with a smooth glass of whisky, Doug’s steely resolve has started to crack. And he doesn’t want to keep quiet—not anymore.

For Private Investigator Sloane Monroe, her high school reunion cruise has been nothing more than a mundane reminder of why she hasn’t returned to her hometown after all these years. Not much has changed, until Doug Ward goes missing. When dried blood is found on the deck where Doug was last seen, Sloane finesses her way into the surveillance room. There, on a small screen in black and white, she sees an image she’ll never forget: Doug being stabbed repeatedly, then heaved over the railing of the cruise ship, his body plunging into the icy depths below.

The reunion cruise ends, but before Sloane can book a plane ride to her past, another former classmate is murdered. In a town where it seems everyone is harboring a secret, how many more will die before Sloane uncovers the biggest secret of all?