Yearly Archives: 2010

A Few Things…

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A reader left the following comment about my novel, Bittersweet Memories, here on my blog. I just wanted to share her comment with the rest of you:
Hi Cecelia,

My daughter, Angel, is from Uganda. She is learning English and absolutely does not like to read… That is, until I discovered your novel, Bittersweet Memories, at a book exchange during my church’s annual Ladies Retreat this year. I brought it home to her and her nose has been stuck in it every since! She just finished it the Friday after Thanksgiving. This is the FIRST book that she has enjoyed reading without my having to prompt her…I didn’t have to tell her once to pick it up, she did it all on her own! Thank you for writing such an inspiring story with wonderful Christian morals for her to read. We look forward to reading more of your books!

Blessings,
Erika and daughter, Angel, in Texas

I was interviewed on the Romance Slam Jam Blog recently. Stop by and check it out and leave a comment!

I’m enjoying the Christmas Season but I’m just a bit bummed that I’m not currently contracted for any novels. I do have a couple of things floating around out there, plus, I’m working on a submission to send to a literary agent within the next month or so.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Always Yesterday By Jeri Odell

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Always Yesterday – Book One In The Sierra Weddings Collection

As a female cop, Delanie Cooper is on her most difficult assignment yet. To stop a baby-selling ring, she goes undercover as an unmarried, pregnant teen. Her new partner, Eli Logan, plays the father. With his rugged good looks, Delanie doesn`t have to fake attraction, but Eli`s rough exterior and bitterness toward women make it hard even to be friends. Eli is outraged at having another female partner. His last one nearly got him killed, and she wasn`t the first woman to let him down. He`s sure he`ll never need another woman in his life or anyone else, not even God. His past has shown him he can only count on himself. Amidst danger and deceit can Eli forget the pain of yesterday to see something different in Delanie? And will he come to know God, the only One who will never let him down?

This book was a quick, pleasant read. Eli was abandoned by his mother, his father’s an alcoholic, and his brother died from a drug overdose. Plus, he’s had a negative experience with a female cop. When he meets beautiful Delanie, his new partner, it’s rough for him to ignore their shared attraction. However, Delanie and her family are strong Christians and Eli wants nothing to do with God. As Eli mentors teens, and is urged to hang out at the Christian teen center with his mentees, he finds himself seeking answers to questions he’s had about the Lord for several years.

Delanie also finds herself smitten with her new partner as they try to bust a baby-selling ring. Offended by Eli’s attitude against women cops, Delanie stands up for herself, proving her worth. As she falls for Eli, she knows that they can never be together since it’s a sin to be unequally yoked with a non-believer. I thought the author did a good job of showing how deeply Delanie and Eli were attracted to one another, but could not be together because of their non-shared religious beliefs. There’s also a side story involving one of Delaney’s best friends who’s struggling with marrying a non-believer. This thread proved intriguing, also.

This story moved pretty fast and you get caught up in the characters and their lives while they perform their jobs as cops. It was a light, sweet, enjoyable story with a small dose of suspense thrown into the mix.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Quick Christmas Reads! :-)

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I wanted to mention a set of Christmas short stories that I recently read entitled Christmas Grace by Robin Bayne and Laura Hamby.

Christmas Grace by Laura Hamby
Hannah Kelsey, now orphaned by the War Between the States, awaits patiently for news of her one, surviving brother. A life that has been anything but easy is made more complicated by the Yankee soldier she finds lying in front of her cabin a few days before the Christmas of 1864.

The Scent of Falling Snow by Robin Bayne
Aideen O’Conner felt a certain twinge when Rob Novak walked into her dance studio. Was it because she thought he didn’t take her seriously, or because she was afraid he would?

When Rob visits his daughter’s step-dancing teacher, he makes it clear he doesn’t consider the activitiy a challenge. The real challange comes when he learns the teacher’s secret.

Christmas Grace is a historical short story that takes place during the Civil War. Hannah is a tough woman who lives alone – her whole planation has been burned to the ground and she’s forced to fend for herself. When she finds a wounded enemy soldier on her property, what should she do? Does God want her to help the enemy? Being around this man unnerves her – in a good sort of way. She’s been alone for so long that she’s forgotten the feeling of love, companionship, and camaraderie with another person. As the story unfolds, you’ll discover that Hannah’s new cabin mate can cause lots of turmoil in her life.

The Scent of Falling Snow is a contemporary short story. Aideen runs a dance studio, and she’s lost custody of her daughter due to the mistake she’s made. Although she’s able to visit her daughter, she hasn’t forgiven herself for her rash, bitter actions against her ex-husband’s wife. When Rob discovers the truth behind Aideen’s actions, he’s devastated. Can Aideen learn to forgive herself and learn to love Rob?

Both of these stories were quick, enjoyable reads and you could easily read both of them in one or two evenings.

So, grab a cup of hot coffee and some Christmas cookies and enjoy these short holiday stories! These tales are nice little treats to savor during the Christmas rush! 🙂

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Photo courtesy of Paul – Free Digital Photos

Attention All Authors And Wannabe Authors!!!

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Watch this video! It’s hilarious!!

Occasionally, I get questions from unpublished writers – and I’ve had a number of people to contact me, stating they want to get a book published, but then admit that they don’t read books…at all!!! The horrors to hear that from a person who wants to get a book published! It’s not easy, by any means, and this video spells it out pretty clearly, especially when someone has a naive view that they can get a book published, pronto!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Sins Of The Mother By Victoria Christopher Murray

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Sins Of The Mother by Victoria Christopher Murray

**Note, although this book has an inspirational message, it’s a mainstream title.

Have the sins of the mother come upon the daughter?

Jasmine Larson Bush is finally living a drama-free life. She’s left her lying, cheating, stealing stripper days behind and is standing by her husband’s side as the first lady of one of the largest churches in New York City. The Bushes have been blessed with the best of everything—including two lovely children.

But just when Jasmine has committed her life completely to God, her daughter Jacqueline is kidnapped from a mall the day after Thanksgiving. The police and the church community join in the frantic search to find the four-year-old. As the days pass without any sign of her daughter, Jasmine begins to crack under the strain and turns to Brian Lewis, Jacqueline’s biological father, for solace.

Has Jasmine’s past finally caught up to her? Will her daughter be found or will Jasmine pay the ultimate price?

==
This book was kind of hard for me to read since I’m a mom. I wondered how I would react if someone took my child (who is five) away, and I don’t know where he is for weeks? I think I’d react much like the character, Jasmine, in Sins Of The Mother.

Jasmine has lived a sin-filled life. Going through previous VCM books, you’ll see that she’s slept with her best friend’s husband. She’s lied continuously, cheated, whored…a whole assortment of things and now she wonders if God is seeking vengeance
against her by allowing her daughter to be kidnapped.

Jasmine turns to her daughter, Jacquie’s, biological father, Brian Lewis for comfort. Brian looks just like Jacquie and being around Brian settles Jasmine’s mood a bit.

Meanwhile, Hosea, Jasmine’s husband, wonders about the attraction that Jasmine now harbors for Brian. Also, Brian is dealing with his own troubles. He’s desperate to win back Alexis, his ex-wife. His marriage folded because of his sexual addiction, and now that he’s cured, he’s determined to win Alexis back.

This book was a real page-turner. You’ll get through this book quickly as you read about the characters getting through the issues and drama in their lives. It was a very enjoyable read and I’m looking forward to VCM’s next book.

I also wanted to point out that if you like VCM then you should try Rhonda McKnight’s books. Victoria’s page-turning style reminded me of the books that I’d read by Rhonda Mcknight.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Question From A Writer

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Photo courtesy of Luigi Diamanti

Maria wrote to me with the following question:

Dear Cecelia,

I have written a Christian novel for children (middle graders), and I would greatly appreciate your advise on how to get commercially published. I am currently an unpublished author. My manuscript has been professionally edited, but I am new to the writing arena and don’t know much about how to get noticed by a publisher.
I’d appreciate any advice you can give me.

Maria, you’re off to a good start since you had your manuscript professionally edited. I did this for the FIRST TIME myself. Although I’m a commercially published novelist, and had to go through the editorial process with a publisher, I recently paid for editorial services on an unpublished manuscript and it improved my story a lot, and I’ll probably go through the same process with future manuscripts. I blogged about my experience briefly here.

From what I’ve heard, breaking into the YA market is harder than adult fiction. Why? I’ve heard that they don’t publish as many YA books as adult books. The first thing I’d do if I were you is go to a bookstore and see what publishers are publishing YA fiction. I’d then search for those publishers online to see what their submission guidelines are. Make sure your book would be a good fit for their YA imprint, though. You don’t want to send a sweet romantic YA novel to a publisher that appears to publish only YA suspense titles. You might also want to see which authors are published with the YA publisher that you’re targeting and see if they have any information on their website/blog about how they got published, or contact them to see what they say.

Find out if the publishers that you want to target will be attending any writers conferences. If they are, you might want to go and meet the editor to see if they may be interested in your story. Having a personal connection with the editor helps when you’re submitting your manuscript.

Also, pray about it! 🙂 Ask God to help you find a home for your work and listen and weigh the advice from other writers! Also, join a writers group in your area. Look online to see if there are any groups that specialize in YA fiction – or just fiction. The two groups that have helped me are Romance Writers of America and American Christian Fiction Writers. Being part of a professional organization can help put you in contact with published novelists, editors, and agents!

Hope my information helps!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Leviathan!

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Thanks so much to Charity, a respondant from this blog post, for sharing this scripture with me. Although I recall reading the book of Job, somehow, I forgot about the Leviathan chapter. Also, the Leviathan is mentioned in the following scriptures, too:
Psalm 74
Isaiah 27:1
Job 41

Job 41 – I’m only emphasizing a few verses. You should read the entire chapter!
1 “Can you draw out Leviathan[a] with a hook,
Or snare his tongue with a line which you lower?
….
… 14 Who can open the doors of his face,
With his terrible teeth all around?
… 18 His sneezings flash forth light,
And his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.
19 Out of his mouth go burning lights;
Sparks of fire shoot out.
20 Smoke goes out of his nostrils,
As from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
21 His breath kindles coals,
And a flame goes out of his mouth.

It sounds like he’s a large, scaly, frightful dragon-like sea creature. My question is, did this creature really exist or is he just mentioned for symbolic reasons? Charity mentioned that this creature sounds like a dinosaur, and I have to agree with her.

The leviathan sounds more like a dinosaur than the nephilim, which another blog reader speculated about, stating that she thought nephilim were dinosaurs, but I’ve already stated that I totally disagree with that line of thought.

So, blog readers, what do you think? Did this fire/smoke breathing dragon-like sea creature really exist in the deep dark depths of the ocean?

~Cecelia Dowdy~