Merry Christmas

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas.  We ended up iced in and ate all the goodies that I made to take to the family dinner.  We'll be eating Cherry dessert I made for awhile.  And the cheese appetizer I made we'll also work on.

I am excited for this new year.  My project for the next few months is a WWII book that will come out in the Summer of 2014.  The series will be with B&H Publishing.  There will be a series of WWII books, but each will be written by a different author.  My book will be set in the Netherlands and England. More later.

I also will have a book out with Love Inspired.  In Redemption Ranch there was a female captain who was injured and was at the ranch to regain strength.  Well, I've finished her book and I'll let everyone know when her story will be out.

I pray this year will be a good one for you.
Leann

My prayer

With what happened in Connecticut all our hearts are sad.  It is beyond understanding.  It is my prayer the God will wrap each family, victims and survivors, in His tender love.   He can comfort them in ways we can't understand.  Please join me in prayer.

Brenda's story is finished.

Some of the best time a writer has is when they finish writing a book.  I finished Captain Brenda Kaye's story on Tuesday.  I did a happy dance, then sent the manuscript to my proofer.  There is no way I could turn a book in without another person reading it.  Most writers need another set of eyes to look over the book, but with me, well, it's twice as bad.

I met the lady who does my proofing when I was in Bonham at their library doing a reading.  Bonham has organized a day in Feb. when they invite local writers to come and talk.  The ladies there bring a dish and feed us all.  It is a wonderful day.  Meeting readers is a highlight.  And I love going there.  That's where I met my proofer and she's been doing it for me for several years.  She's a jem.

Season of Thanksgiving

Leann here. I hope y'all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  My son-in-law cooked the turkey this year and did a wonderful job.  Our numbers were somewhat reduced due to my mom and sister-in-law weren't feeling well.  But we had a wonderful time.  Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday.  It has not been commercialized.  It is a time for giving thanks.  And what I enjoy the most about turkey day is turkey sandwiches with dressing and cranberries on it.  It is the best.

What is your favorite part of Thanksgiving?

Captain Brenda Kaye

If y'all recall in Beth's book, Redemption Ranch, there was a character, Captain Brenda Kaye.  When she appeared in the book, she wanted to take over.  Every time I started writing on Redemption Ranch, "Kaye" as she wants to be called--not Brenda, kept coming to my mind first.  After several days, I had to talk to the captain and say, "This is not your book, but you can have  your own."  With that promise, Kaye behaved. 

I am now writing Kaye's book.  She's back home and dealing with lots of baggage after being injured  when a insurgent walked into the cafe where she was meeting with several Iraqi women and blew himself up.  She's spent a lot of time in the hospital.  The hero of that book, Caleb Jensen, who is a pick-up rider in the rodeo.  He's facing a few problems of his own.  Now, for Kaye's eagerness to interrupt Beth's book, she's mighty reluctant to talk now.  I'll get it out of her, rest assured.

Since Caleb is a pick-up rider, I needed to do some research and  went to a rodeo in a neighboring town..  All research such be such fun.

Happy Veteran's Day

Mom in her uniform

 Church was opened with a selection of all the military theme songs.  There is nothing more soul stirring than to hear those songs.It calls to the deepest part of our souls.  This country owes a debt of gratitude to those brave men and women who fought.  They gave of themselves and in doing so, were tested in fire.

I find myself in awe.  Both my parents and husband were Army and I'm proud of them.  If you go to your local cemetery and walk through, you'll see head markers of young men who never made it to the age to 20.  The cemetery where my husband's family is buried, there are several grave stones not far from where our family is and they all read the same date in 1941. 

Please take a moment and give thanks to those brave solider/sailors/marines/coast guard that paid the price of freedom.

Dad setting in front of his barracks.

Horse Resuce

This is Dr. Tessa.  When I first met Ethan, he doubted I could do big animal veterinary medicine.  He thought, as most men do, how could a little woman do the job of helping with a breech birth or getting a stick out of a cow's throat.  The man looked on the outside, but he quickly learned that my heart is a big as his and when he saw he deliver that breech foal, I made a believer of him.  Of course, most men are that way.  You have to show them.

I'm okay with that.  I showed him.

Lies will catch up with You

I am Tessa's mom, Joan Grant.  The title of the blog is a little misleading.  I never actively told Tessa a lie, but my silence was a lie.  I let her believe that man she knew as Dad was her biological father.  But when is a good time to tell your 8 year-old the man she knows as Dad isn't her biological dad?

My parents weren't understanding when I got pregnant in high school.  My father's reaction was he didn't want to be shamed by my behavior.  My mother went along with Dad.  It was my grandmother who came in and loved me though the pregnancy.  I thought my parents would come to love Tessa, but they could never unbend from their judgement.

I fell head over hills for a skinny kid who was in his senior  year in college.  He wanted to become a vet.  We dreamed together on how we could make a go of it.  When Vince won is scholarship to Purdue, I knew if he had a wife and baby he wouldn't go on to be a vet.  I couldn't do that to him, so I never told him.  If I could go back and do it all again, I would.  I would trust Vince enough to know he could be married, go to school and become a successful veterinarian.   Too back hindsight is 100%.

Dr. Vince Adams, The Vet

This is my first time to blog, but I guess you could say I got the ball rolling in Fresh-Start Ranch.  I'll back up a bit.  The last time I was kicked by one of the cows at McClure ranch, I wasn't fast enough to avoid the hoof and ended up with a big bruise.  Well, at my age, you move a littler slower and it took close to an hour with an ice pack on my leg to satisfy Lynda and Ken McClure at I was okay. (I think they were right.)

Well, I had to admit, I needed another partner.  A younger vet.  I tried hiring a few, but they didn't want to do big animal practice outside of Albuquerque.  I had a couple of vets substitute for me while I went back home to Kentucky to see my family, but those vets didn't stay.  The second guy had his car packed and notes on the table and when I showed up, he said goodbye and drove away.

 I got desperate and went to my old school, Purdue Veterinary School.  That's were I found Dr. Tessa Grant.  I knew she was a woman and she was only five feet tall, but I needed help and was will to give her a try.

She didn't disappoint.  The lady has a way with horses that can't be taught. And I not only got a partner, but I found my daughter and found a family.

Dr. Tessa's Time

Tessa here.  I guess I'll have to jump in and defend myself.  When Leann was writing my story, she know about my past, and I told her my passion for horses.  There was no other direction for me to go with my career.  When my step-dad (and at the time I didn't know he was) left my mom and me, my horse was my refuge.  When mom had to sell the ranch outside of Lexington, I made a deal with the new owners if I could board my horse there, I'd work for free.  They let me.  I was more cooperative with the writer than a certain cowboy I know.

Of course when I met Ethan, I knew I was going to have problems with him.  He didn't disappoint, but the grief was worth it.

What do you expect?

Okay, Miss Leann, I'm going to defend myself.  Guys don't spill their guts.  That's just a girl thing.  Do you know any man who wants to share his feelings?  Give me a break.  You just didn't want to write about Tessa, but you wanted to learn about my skeletons.  You wanted to learn about my ex-fiancee, my mistakes in high school and problem with gambling.  I mean, Zach also wasn't to eager to admit when he was in a funk. 

You know, I wouldn't have said anything about my gambling, but Tessa was hurting and I wanted to help ease her pain but it blew up in my face.  She'd lived with a gambler, and when I confessed by gambling, she pushed me away.

I know horses and cows.  They're much easier to deal with than females, but I'll say that a girl is nicer to cuddle up to than my horse and definitely my cows.

ACFW Conference

I just came back from the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) conference held in Dallas.  It was great to spend time with other folks who are as weird as I am.  I talked to old friends and made some new ones.  I  met my new editor at B&H. Several of the other writers who are writing WWII books  were there.  (My book is set in the Netherlands and England).   I also talked to the editors for Love Inspired Romance.  Which brings me to my current work which is out right now.  My son-in-law sent me a picture while I was at the conference of my book on the shelf at Walmart.  It still is a thrill to see your baby in the store.  I'll confess that every author I know counts how many book are still there.  We want them gone.

Well, because I was gone last week and getting on line at the hotel wasn't easy, I didn't post, but I know my characters are eager to start spilling the beans.  I think Ethan is first up, so turn in on Thursday.  I'm sure he'll have a lot to say.  If you have questions for him, ask. I know he'll answer the.

Ethan and Tessa

When characters come to you, they intrigue you and you start asking who are you?  When I started writing Second Chance Ranch Zach McClure, the hero, had two siblings, Beth and Ethan.  Beth was the youngest and Ethan the eldest.  Through both Zach's and Beth's books, Ethan was the calm steady presence who everyone depended upon.  He was the level head.  A girl couldn't ask anything better from a man.  And he's  a hunk...

That's great, right?   Uh, not really.  How boring.  All readers love the bad boy, the fallen hero because we want to redeem him.  So what do you do with the nice guy?

When I started Ethan's book, the man was really closed mouth.   Stubborn.  He wouldn't talk to me for days.  But I was determined to tell his story.  Don't you just hate when a man won't open up?  Well, it took me sometime to pry it out of him, but I found out.  And of course, Tessa proved to be as much as a challenge.  She had her secrets, but was more willing to share.  But I got the straight skinny and it's in the book.



I'm sure Ethan's not going to take my bad mouthing him lying down, but he'll have to live with it.

All the characters give behind the scenes comments on the current book (as if I could stop them), but I'll continue blogging my thoughts.  And what crazy thoughts an author has.  Since this fall is a new beginning for this blog... I hope you readers will comment, ask questions about the book, let me know what you want to know.  Hopefully, it will give y'all insight.

A New Beginning

There's a change in the air.  I'm going to combine a couple of blogs that I've been writing.  Character Corners and Critter Chronicles are going to come together.  I hope to blog several times a week.  When a book get closer to its pub date, the characters in that book will take over and give you, the reader, a behind the scenes scoop of what got left out of the book.  Hopefully, my readers will want to ask questions of the writer and characters.  Hopefully, we'll have a fun adventure together.
Leann