Interview with Regency Romance Author Donna Hatch

Donna Hatch, author of the best-selling “Rogue Hearts Series,” has won writing awards such as The Golden Quill and the International Digital Award. A hopeless romantic and adventurer at heart, she discovered her writing passion at the tender age of eight and has been listening to those voices ever since. She is a sought-after workshop presenter, and juggles freelance editing, multiple volunteer positions, and most of all, her six children. A native of Arizona who recently transplanted to the Pacific Northwest, she and her husband of over twenty five years are living proof that there really is a happily ever after.

Welcome back to my blog, Donna. This is the synopsis of your new Regency Romance: The Suspect’s Daughter.

Determined to help her father with his political career, Jocelyn sets aside dreams of love until she meets a mysterious gentleman with dangerous secrets. Working undercover, Grant’s only suspect for a murder conspiracy is the father of a lady who is getting increasingly hard to ignore. They must work together to find the assassins. England’s future hangs in the balance...and so does their love.

Where did you get your inspiration for this story?

The murder plot in The Suspect’s Daughter was inspired by a true event in England known as the Cato Street Conspiracy, which thankfully, was averted largely in part due to an undercover Bow Street Runner whose name I never learned. This event happened in 1820, the same year my book takes place, and though my conspiracy varied considerably from the true events, there is a similar basic plot.

What kind of research did you do for this book?

I’ve been researching the Regency since 2002 when I first decided this was going to be my specialty so I can weave in details about customs, fashion, the political climate and current events into my books. For this book specifically, I researched the Cato Street Conspiracy from many different sources, as well as Parliament and how a new prime minister was chosen. I also studied maps and travel guides to understand the layout of London so I can add little details to make the readers feel as if they are there. In addition, I inadvertently researched concussions when my husband got one, and Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome through his friend who’d recently returned home from serving in the armed forces in the Middle East.

Please tell us about one of the main characters in this story and what you like about him or her.

Though Grant Amesbury is a cynic and a loner, his brothers always turned to him when they needed help. Grant would be the last one to classify himself as a dark knight, but he thrives on chasing down villains and dragging them to justice--dead or alive. Intriguing and enigmatic, Grant has captivated readers since the first book in the series, The Stranger She Married, hit bookstores. And each time he appeared in subsequent books, The Guise of a Gentleman, and A Perfect Secret, his fan base grew as did requests for his very own story.

I have been planning to finish his story in time for an autumn release date, but my daughter got married and then our family moved out of state. All of these events took me away from writing. But I was determined to release the book this year—I felt I owed that to my fans. So I pushed and pushed and managed to get it finished in time for a December release date—sort of a Christmas present to my fans who’ve been begging for Grant’s story.

I, too, liked Grant when I read The Stranger She Married, so I’m glad that you have made him a main character in this story. Where can my readers find you online?

Donna's Website: http://donnahatch.com
Donna's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DonnaHatch.Author
The link to buy The Suspect’s Daughter

Thank you, Donna, for this wonderful interview. I hope my followers will grab a copy and read it. Your regency romances are not only intriguing but very clean. A BIG PLUS!

Interview with Inspirational Author Dave Arnold

Dave Arnold is a pastor, author, speaker, life coach and adjunct professor at a college. Dave is married to Angie and they have two children, Luke (5 years old) and Angelina (20 months; a little over a year-and-a-half). Dave has written three books and is working on two more.

Welcome to my blog, Dave. Please tell us about your book: It’s Possible.

It’s Possible is a short, action-packed book that will help you learn to thrive. So many people just settle in life: they live for the weekends, that next vacation, etc. But God has created us with a purpose and a unique set of passions. We are here for a reason and to make a difference in the world. Throughout this book, I use inspiring stories and give practical tips on how to take steps towards thriving. Of course, thriving is a life-long process; but I do believe it’s possible (hence the title) to take steps to becoming all that we are meant to become.

Wow! That is such an inspiring thought, that God has created us with a purpose and we have to find that purpose and take those steps to becoming what he wants us to be. Where did you get your inspiration for this book?

It’s Possible was written out of my own experience of when I was merely “surviving” in life. There was a time I was working so much that I barely had time to breathe and found myself discounted from my wife and from my faith in God. But thankfully, through a poignant conversation with my wife, I began to take steps to learn what it means to thrive.

What kind of research did you do?

My own study of the Bible was most prominent for the writing of this book. I also weave throughout many quotes from people throughout history. I am an avid reader, so much of my material comes from the books I read.

The study of the Bible is the best research a person can do, Dave. Now it’s time to tell us something about the real you that we’ll never forget.

Growing up I struggled a lot in school. I had a hard time keeping up. Because of this, I was told I had a learning disability and was forced to go to Resource, a special Ed class. I was humiliated. But it was during this time that my Resource teacher, a wonderful kind woman, recognized a gift in me – the gift of telling a story. And so, she encouraged me to write and use my imagination through words. She saw something in me that I didn’t see. All I saw was there was something wrong with me; she saw potential. “Love,” said Bono of the band U2, “is seeing potential in someone.” What a gift we can give others!

Thank you for sharing a part of yourself in this interview, Dave. Where can my readers find you online?

My website is www.davearnoldspeaks.com.

You can also find Dave Arnold Speaks on Facebook and you can find me on Twitter at @davejarnold16.

I hope my followers will check out this wonderful and inspiring book. I’m sure it will help you in your life.

A Christmas Miracle: Don’t Let Him Die

All of us wish our lives could go smoothly, with no trials or tribulations to endure, but that is not possible. Disappointments, physical or mental stress, and sorrow are part of life. George MacDonald (1824 – 1905) said, “How often we look upon God as our last and feeblest resource! We go to Him because we have nowhere else to go. And then we learn that the storms of life have driven us, not upon the rocks but into the desired haven.”

We must rise above our problems, become humble and continue on. That’s where the line is drawn between those who give up and those who have faith in themselves and in a loving God. Our Father in Heaven is here to help us endure our trials.

We grow from the many experiences we have in life, and it molds us into better people. We can compare it to a rough stone that tumbles in a streambed and gradually becomes smooth and beautiful. All the jagged edges have been worn off. The result is a beautiful polished stone.

Opal H. Clarke and her twelve-year-old son endured a difficult trial. She wrote about the experiences they had to bear when he contracted a dreadful illness.

Don’t Let Him Die

I first became aware of my twelve year old son’s illness when the choppy rendition at the piano of “Hark! The Herald Angels sing,” had stopped. Glancing at him, his head resting on the piano, I asked, “What’s wrong?’

He replied, “I don’t feel good.”

As he looked up I saw his cheeks were flushed; on closer inspection it proved to be a fine rash. He had a temperature. I called our family doctor and described the symptoms. He said it sounded like the measles that were going around and he prescribed a well-known drug.

The next day, George complained of his eyes hurting. Blisters began to appear on his ears and lips, and his temperature rose. After sitting by his side for several hours, I had to leave the room momentarily. As I returned, the sight was so shocking. I rushed from the room, dropped to the floor and cried. George had rubbed all the skin from his blistered lips. His ears, neck and face were a mass of blisters, with one large blister hanging like a sac on one side of his face. George did not sleep. He kept asking us to please turn out the lights. It was frightening to hear him ask this; there was only a small night-light burning and I had a small folded towel over his eyes.

Upon our arrival at the hospital, we were taken to an isolation room. As the ambulance attendant lifted my son onto the bed, the large blister on his face, a hanging sac of sloshing fluid, broke.

Now, lying naked on the sterile sheets, coughing and choking, his body a mass of blisters and skinless places, he looked like someone wearing an ugly mask. I wanted to cry out, “No! No!” But I prayed that for my son’s sake my voice would be calm.

Nothing could have torn me away from my son at this time; so I was given a hospital gown and a mask. The next few days were crucial ones. Large areas of skin that had gone dark and looked as if they were scalded, pushed off from George’s back and he stuck to the sheets. The skin, pushed up on his upper arm, looked like a wrinkled nylon stocking. George’s mouth and throat were blistered, as well as the bronchial tubes, and he was coughing constantly. I covered my face, put my head on the windowsill and fought the tears.

The eye doctor said the eyes were blistered, even on the cornea, and added, “If he comes along—we may not be able to save his eyes.” It came to me that my son might be blind!

A new nurse coming in to put drops in George’s eyes, leaned over him and said, “George, I have something to put in your eyes. Can you turn your head this way?” She leaned over, and as he turned his face with its black-rimmed hole for a mouth, one side of his face practically skinless, and skinless ears—all this was too much for this nurse. She became nauseous, gagged and hurriedly left the room.

One night, two couples were standing in the hall. One of the men looked in at George and gasped. When his wife stepped over to where he was standing, he led her away, remarking, “You do not want to see that.”

Each time the doctor entered the room, he would greet my son with, “How are you, George?” George would answer, “Pretty good.” Always pretty good. At one time the doctor looked at him and said, “You are a game little guy!” There were tears in his eyes.

George asked me if I was praying. I assured him I was. He also asked if the church members could pray for him.

One evening, the young doctor gravely told me things were not going well and that he had done all that he could. At that moment I felt desperately alone; what could I do except go to God for help? I returned to the room and knelt beside my son’s bed and pleaded with God to let him live.

The next day, George asked, “Are they still praying for me?”

I said, “Oh, yes. We surely are, son.”

Then he asked me if I’d hold his hand. He said, “If you don’t mind holding a scratchy one.”

All day I held his hand. By evening I sensed a calmness come over him. I said, “Doctor, I think he is better!”

The doctor examined him, turned to me, and with a look of almost disbelief and surprise said, “I think he is!” The crisis had passed.

The miraculous powers of the body to heal took over. New skin began to grow and the old skin sloughed off. All twenty of his fingernails and toenails came off.

Suddenly we were aware that it was Christmas Eve. Kind nurses and Santa himself came to where a brave young boy with a blotched and burned-looking body sat in the bed. By tipping his head back, he saw through slits of eyes a Christmas bouquet and said, “I can see! I can see!” At that moment I was humbled beyond words.

The young doctor came into the room and said, “George, you have made medical history.” Then he asked if we minded the case being written for the medical journals. I tried to thank our tall young doctor. He said humbly, “I just stood by.” But I knew he had worked valiantly to save my son.

Our family doctor came into the room and said, “George, you are a walking miracle.” The nurses, who came to say good-bye to us, said that no one in the hospital expected to see our son go out of the hospital alive. The eye doctor said, “I feel so humble about this boy. It certainly has made me a believer.”

At this unforgettable Christmas time I realized that, to me, Christmas would forever be a time of rejoicing; rejoicing for the gift of a son.” (Opal H. Clarke, “Don’t Let Him Die”)

This young man grew to adulthood but his body wasn’t the same. His eyes are constantly red because his tear ducts were destroyed and he has to put special eye drops in his eyes constantly. He coughs frequently and has a raspy sound when he breathes because he has Chronic Bronchitis but he never lost his faith in God. This faithful man, George Amos Clarke, my sweetheart and husband, was grateful for a miracle.

The True Spirit of Christmas

Interview with Author Jill Vanderwood, AKA, Mrs. Claus

Jill Ammon Vanderwood is an associate member of IBRBS, International Brotherhood of Real Bearded Santas. Along with Santa Claus, she sees hundreds of children each Christmas season. Jill is also a multiple award winning author, including the National Mom’s Choice Award. You can visit her on the web at www.jillvanderwood.com

Welcome back to my blog, Jill. Please tell us about your new book, Santa’s Mystery Boot.

Santa is trying out a special boot this year to make snow in places like New Zealand where it's summer in December. There are buttons along the side of the boot that not only make snow. One button plays Christmas music, one sprays a mist to help children have gingerbread dreams, and the other button makes the boot turbo charged to help Santa get up the chimney. Tim and Tommy Adams have plans to capture the real Santa, but Santa has other plans. His boot has a special part in helping the boys discover the true spirit of Christmas.

Where did you get your inspiration for this story?

I listen to kids when they talk to Santa Claus. I have heard kids say they wanted to stay up late so they could catch Santa Claus. Children ask many questions, such as, what do you do when there isn't snow at Christmas time? Another question is, how do you get up the chimney? I decided that Santa needed a special boot to solve all of his problems. But, as the story goes along, the boot also creates problems.

Your husband is Mr. Claus and spreads joy to many children. Please tell us how he came into this role.

My husband is a professional Real Bearded Santa. He first started being Santa when our kids were young, and he fit into the Santa suit the church had in a closet. I was always trying to get him to be Santa again and he finally decided to transform into the jolly old elf.  I would bleach his beard so it would be white.

At first, Santa would wear a red shirt and a Santa hat and deliver candy to his co-workers at Christmas time. One of our granddaughters said she knew he wasn't the real Santa. When asked how she knew he wasn't the real Santa, she said, "Because you don't have red pants!"

I understand that you have a hidden identity, also. I heard you became Mrs. Claus about six years ago. What is it like being Mrs. Claus and how do you get into the Christmas spirit?

I say I married well and we get invited to all the best parties! I was trained at the Mrs. Claus Academy at a Santa convention in California. I made my own outfit from the same fabric as Santa's suit. One of my rolls as Mrs. Claus is to calm down little children. I hold most of the little ones who are afraid of Santa. I imagine our pictures are all over Facebook because we smile for continuous pictures. I also give out the gifts to the children. 

We always do our first event the weekend after Thanksgiving. We get into the Christmas spirit by watching movies such as the Santa Claus and the Polar Express. We listen to Christmas music in our home and on our way to events.

Where can my readers find you online?

My website is http://www.jillvanderwood.com and Santa's website is http://www.utahsantavisit.com.

Santa's Mysterious Boot is available through Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com and on Amazon Kindle.

Thank you so much for this interview, Jill. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.