Writing time at Panera!
Hey, everybody! I hope you’ve had a great week! I have! Two of my books went “permafree” and it’s going very well (see links in News & Notes). My SPLASH! novella went on sale by itself (but the SPLASH collection is still a much better deal!) Plus, you know how my kids are on the swim team? Championships were this week (7 hours in a college Natatorium with about 500 swimmers and all the ancillary personnel that goes with it).
My 13yo managed to pull out 8th place in the butterfly (16 swimmers) and knocked nearly 10 seconds off her time. She also managed to keep up with her best friend in freestyle (this friend took first at our last meet – my kiddo took 6th with 3.5 seconds difference). She was actually ahead for about 15 yards, but ended up about .5 second behind (which was the difference between 9th and 12th place out of 30). My kiddo came in 16 (out of 21) on her back stroke, but COMPLETELY missed the wall on her flip turn at the end of the first half lap :p. (They do one full lap down and back.) Otherwise, the times were close enough, she could have easily moved up a slot or two. Silly girl. You’re supposed to PUSH OFF the wall! Not miss it! :D
The 11yo did an individual medley (swimming all four strokes: butterfly, back, breast, free). It’s only the third time she’s done one in competition. She came in next to last (13 out of 14), but knocked 2 seconds off her time – with no goggles because they came loose when she dove in. It would have taken another 10 seconds faster to move up a slot and that was unlikely.
The 10yo knocked time off in all of her races and was doing very well in her back stroke until she started hitting the lane ropes :/. And the 7yo knocked nearly 11 seconds off his freestyle. He added seconds in his backstroke but his form was MUCH better than usual and he was concentrating on it and not speed. None of my swimmers came in last in any event and they all did their best. Which is all this mom – or their coaches – could ask for.
Except…
THE TEAM TOOK FIRST PLACE!!!! For the first time ever, our local club took first place out of the nine teams in our district!!! We’re hoping it will help convince the high school athletic people that we need a swim team ;).
As always, if you’re a winner, please email us at:
prizes at inspyromance dot com
Last week
Monday: Lindi Peterson talked about her photo shoot for her upcoming release, The Little Black Wedding Dress.
Tuesday: Hallee Bridgeman talked about writer’s conferences – Christian vs. mainstream.
Wednesday: Lynnette Sowell talked about her upcoming release, A Promise of Grace.
Thursday: Kimberly Rose Johnson talked about Love in Mistletoe Springs, an anthology that includes a number of current and former InspyRomance Authors!
Friday: Annalisa Daughety interviewed Jason Thompson from Kelly’s Charm.
Saturday: Ginger Solomon gave a closer look at Mr. Christmas and Miss Scrooge – her offering in Love in Mistletoe Springs.
Coming Up
7yo’s make up baseball game – 2 hits, at least 1 RBI, 2 runs scored
Monday: Diane Adams
Tuesday: Elizabeth Maddrey
Wednesday: Valerie Comer
Thursday: Heidi McCahan
Friday: Sally Bradley
Saturday: Heather Gray
News & Notes
NEW RELEASES
July 2015
Enchantment (The Lewis Legacy Series 6) by JoAnn Durgin
Love in Mistletoe Springs BOX SET by Ginger Solomon, Lee Tobin McClain, Kimberly Rose Johnson, Gail Sattler, and Lee Carver
More Than Friends (The Macleans: Catriona) by Autumn Macarthur
Sweet Serenade (Riverbend Romance 3) by Valerie Comer
Time and Tide by Lynette Sowell
The Lifeguards, the Swim Team, and Frozen Custard by Carol Moncado
Orphaned Hearts by Marion Ueckermann
His Perfect Catch by Narelle Atkins
Nursing the Soldier’s Heart (Village of Hope 2) by Merrillee Whren
NEWS & AWARDS
Belle Calhoune is pleased to announce that she’s signed a 3-book deal with Love Inspired for a series set in Alaska.
Hand-Me-Down Princess by Carol Moncado available to preorder for a special price of 99¢.
Kept by Sally Bradley has won the Grace Award, a reader-driven award, for best romance published in 2014.
Splash! BOX SET by Narelle Atkins, Valerie Comer, Autumn Macarthur, Heidi McCahan, Lesley Ann McDaniel, Carol Moncado, Lynette Sowell, Jan Thompson, and Marion Ueckermann is now available at 99¢.
Summer of Love BOX SET by Leah Atwood, Valerie Comer, JoAnn Durgin, Kimberly Rae Jordan, Lee Tobin McClain, and Staci Stallings is now available at 99¢.
Love Brings Us Home BOX SET by Hallee Bridgeman, Valerie Comer, JoAnn Durgin, Kimberly Rae Jordan, Staci Stallings, Lynette Sowell, and Debra Ullrick is on sale for 99¢.
PERMANENTLY FREE
Raspberries and Vinegar (A Farm Fresh Romance 1) by Valerie Comer
The Wedding List (Love in Store 1) by Autumn Macarthur
To Protect and Serve (Courage 1) by Staci Stallings
His Baby Bond (Sacred Bond 1) by Lee Tobin McClain
Greater than Rubies (Jewel Series 2) by Hallee Bridgeman
Finding Mr. Write (CANDID Romance 1) by Carol Moncado
Good Enough for a Princess (The Montevaro Monarchy 1) by Carol Moncado
AUDIOBOOKS
Raspberries and Vinegar by Valerie Comer
When she's not writing about her imaginary friends, Carol Moncado is hanging out with her husband and four kids in the big yard of their southwest Missouri home, teaching American Government at a community college, reading, or watching NCIS. She's a member of ACFW and RWA, President and founding member for the MozArks ACFW group, and a category coordinator for ACFW's First Impressions.
Hi Carol, Yay! for your kids’ swim results :)
Yay for the kids’ team doing so well! They must be stoked to have achieved personal bests for for the team to win overall. What a long day for Mom though!
Missing news- my Christmas romance Believe in Me will be 99c US/ 99p UK this week only, for Christmas in July! http://amzn.to/1URpiwE
It sounds like you had a fun week. My son did swim team-good times, but long days! Congrats to your kids.
Congrats on the exciting writing week, Carol!
Congrats to your kids, Carol! Sounds like long but satisfying days for all of you!
And since I have already purchased my copy of SPLASH, I’m really looking forward to all of the stories :-)
Here’s to another great week of blogs!