He never forgot his first love.
In the ten years since Ben Taylor last saw Marie, no other woman has measured up. After he meets Rebecca Fisher, the physical therapist rehabilitating his knee, Ben is convinced that she is the same woman he fell in love with so many years ago. She denies it at first, but his persistence causes her to admit the truth. Right before she pushes him away.
To escape a painful negative image created by her father, Rebecca Fischer has constructed an identity completely separate from her past. Seeing Ben, her long lost love, threatens to shatter her intricate illusions. As Ben digs to uncover the truth of who she is, Rebecca must decide if she will trust any man with her wounded heart.
But even if Ben can convince her to admit the truth, how will he be able to trust her love?
My writing life has been a little topsy turvy for the last six months or so. When I first proposed my current series, the small press with whom I’ve published all my previous books was excited. So I set about writing A Splash of Substance and, when it was finished, sent it in. And for various reasons, shortly found that they were no longer interested in publishing it. I’ll admit, I wasn’t happy. I cast about my options, trying to figure out what I should do. Should I find another publisher? Should I publish it myself? Should I just pitch the whole idea of being a writer and go back to writing books and storing them on my hard drive for my own personal enjoyment only? Well, I quickly discarded the third option. And the first wasn’t slow to follow. And so, with a deep breath, I jumped into the indie pool completely. I’d self-published Kinsale Kisses previously, so it wasn’t as if I didn’t know what I was doing (well, in so far as we ever really know what we’re doing) but it still wasn’t completely how I’d imagined my writing going.
Some of that sense of being unsure of whether or not I was doing the right thing sapped my motivation. It’s a challenge to keep putting words on paper when you’re not sure that you’re serving any purpose. Now, I’ll caveat here, I’m not convinced it’s ok for a writer to say something like that. Most of what I see other authors talking about is how awesome their lives are and I do understand the idea behind putting your best foot forward, wearing the happy face, and so for and so on. But I’ve also never been particularly good at that. So I hope you’ll bear with me. The point is…I struggled. A lot. Consequently, it’s been a race to the finish line for A Pinch of Promise, which I’d promised just enough people would be out “in June” that I didn’t feel I could easily push it back without feeling like I’d let people down, myself included.
I have a special pre-order price of just $0.99 running until it releases on June 9th. You can pre-order for Kindle here.
Now, since I struggled, you might think it’s odd that I hope you’re excited. But let me be the first to say that, now that’s it done? I’m so excited about A Pinch of Promise! I fell in love with Ben and Rebecca as I wrote about them and I hope and pray that you’ll feel the same.
Elizabeth Maddrey is a semi-reformed computer geek and homeschooling mother of two who lives in the suburbs of Washington D.C. When she isn’t writing, Elizabeth is a voracious consumer of books. She loves to write about Christians who struggle through their lives, dealing with sin and receiving God’s grace on their way to their own romantic happily ever after.
I know it must have seemed frustrating and confusing at the time, but I can’t wait to see how the Lord uses your new book in the channel to which he has led you. Looks like a great story!
I’m glad you persevered and pressed on to the finish line.
Thanks, Deb!
Thanks, Becky. Me too :) I had a number of people praying with and for me, that made the difference.
This really sounds like a fantastic book Elizabeth! One of my favorite story-lines is first loves meeting up again years later in some fashion or form. Maybe because somewhere in the back of my mind, I think of my first love and all the what-if’s that come along with it. I really don’t believe you ever forget your first love, at least it’s that way for me!
I’m so glad you didn’t give up on writing even though the road has been a rough one! I know for sure that the Lord always has a plan for our lives and sometimes he redirects our paths right in the middle of it all. I know how it can feel to be caught off guard, but I also know that God has my life all in His hands and that I must trust and rest in Him. Very hard to do!! Especially in the midst of your world being upended. Feeling directionless, confused, and not sure where to go next. Such a scary time! That’s when I know I need to step back and re-evaluate & just simply TRUST that God has something good in store! Be encouraged, Elizabeth! God gave you the desire to write and He is the author of your life, He’ll direct your path :-)
I have a copy of “Splash of Substance” that you had sent to me a while back, and also “Kinsale Kisses” & “Faith Departed”. I haven’t gotten to reading them just yet, but I will eventually…it’s a case of a really, really long to-read list (both Kindle and paperback!)! :-D I like the sound of “A Pinch of Promise” so much that I am going to pre-order this before the June 9th date! As I said before, first loves reuniting is my absolute favorite story-line!
Thank you for an honest post today, your burdens should be shared so that we can, first, pray for you and second keep encouraging you on your path! You have a God-given talent that should always shine for Him :-)