A Romantic Heart

Since I've been there, done that...
I suppose I should get the tee shirt. 

Okay, so many of you may have noticed my blogging went in the tank over the summer...or maybe you didn't. In that case, the polite thing to do would be to pretend you missed me. 

During my absence, I sent another son (son #3, Carter) off to WVU to study forensics. And son #1, Caleb, was prepped and readied for his move to the Big Apple to work on his law degree at NYU. 

July-August was simply life on fast-forward. 

In the midst of it all, my mom returned from Alaska with her husband, Frank, for an extended visit. The week we took Caleb to New York, my mom wasn't feeling very well. She was admitted to the hospital and in a seeming spiral, went from feeling ill to being incoherent and on a ventilator. It's only been in the last few days that she has started to be responsive and hopefully will be breathing on her own again soon. 

Prayers welcome. I totally do prayers. 

But, in my fog, I forgot to post this for Stephanie Faris' blog tour. And that's just bad. These are some books the whole world should know about, and these are some of them. I love Stephanie's stories/ They're fun reminder of a simpler time when kids can think up the best dreams and reality is not yet a hindrance. 

So, please welcome, Stephanie!! 


Why I Still Have a Special Place in My Heart for Romance Novelists

by Stephanie Faris

We met in a middle school classroom. There were only a few of us in those early days and we still weren’t sure what we would call ourselves. All we knew was that we lived in the Nashville area and we wrote romance novels. We were so excited to finally meet other people who did what we did.

That group became Music City Romance Writers, which just celebrated its 20^th anniversary. In my early days of writing, those women helped me learn, grow, and survive numerous rejections. MCRW was a chapter of Romance Writers of America, an organization that has chapters across the globe. Like other writing organizations, RWA is geared toward helping writers navigate the rollercoastery life that is writing!

Unlike most writers groups, RWA is filled with women who have to support each other when it often feels like the world is against them. The only snide comments I’ve ever heard about my writing came when I was a romance novelist. Even a year ago, a female author made a mean comment about romance when I brought up that I used to write it. I will defend my romance novelist friends until the day I die. Those women are some of the hardest-working, successful writers I’ve ever met.

Yes, successful. Because romance novels bring in serious money, y’all. Romance novels earn more than a billion dollars a year, making up 13 percent of all adult fiction sales. Many authors have advanced degrees and have found they can make more writing romance than in their chosen field (plus it’s far more fun!).

For women who regularly dismiss romance, consider this: it is one of the few industries run by women for women where numerous professionals are making six-figure salaries. Some of them you’ve never even heard of. There are also many more who are making more than you make at your day job…and they’re doing that work from the comfort of their homes. I’ve seen feminists scoff at the romance genre, but what happens if they stop picturing Fabio and start thinking of it as an actual profession. There are romance novelists making more than CEOs of major corporations and they should be applauded, not ridiculed.

But most of all, I’ll defend romance novelists because they are some of the warmest, most supportive authors you’ll ever meet. If you’ve never read a romance, pick up one and give it a try. You can start with Elizabeth Seckman’s entire library! You may just rethink your position on the genre.

When Piper Morgan has to move to a new town, she is sad to leave behind her friends, but excited for a new adventure. She is determined to have fun, be brave and find new friends.

In Piper Morgan Joins the Circus, Piper learns her mom’s new job will be with the Big Top Circus. She can’t wait to learn all about life under the big top, see all the cool animals, and meet the Little Explorers, the other kids who travel with the show. She’s even more excited to learn that she gets to be a part of the Little Explorers and help them end each show with a routine to get the audience on their feet and dancing along!

In Piper Morgan in Charge, Piper’s mom takes a job in the local elementary school principal’s office. Piper is excited for a new

school and new friends—and is thrilled when she is made an “office helper.” But there is one girl who seems determined to prove she is a better helper—and she just so happens to be the principal’s daughter. Can Piper figure out how to handle being the new girl in town once more?

Stephanie Faris knew she wanted to be an author from a very young age. In fact, her mother often told her to stop reading so much and go outside and play with the other kids. After graduating from Middle Tennessee State University with a Bachelor of Science in broadcast journalism, she somehow found herself working in information technology. But she never stopped writing.

Stephanie is the Simon & Schuster author of 30 Days of No Gossip and 25 Roses. When she isn’t crafting fiction, she writes for a variety of online websites on the topics of business, technology, and her favorite subject of all—fashion. She lives in Nashville with her husband, a sales executive.

Links: Website/ Blog/ Facebook/ Twitter/ Instagram/ Amazon

Give Away page

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/YmE3MjA1ZmE3NmM3MjJlOTUyMzIyZjViYzk5OWQ3OjY=/?

Thanks to our hosts Lexa, L.G, and Tonja Drecker for this weekly good things check in! 

1. My mom is doing much better than she was. Whenever I leave the hospital, I tell her to keep breathing. You don't realize how important that is until you can't do it. 

2. My kids are settled back in school and seem content. 

3. I have some quiet time to write and get back to work, though I miss the chaos. This whole back-to-school thing isn't so great when your kids start leaving their home state. Roots and wings, right?