Friday, October 21, 2016

Christmas of Hope Anthology




Dear Friends and Family,
I’m excited to announce my upcoming book release on October 24, 2016. My novella, A True Christmas Present will be part of an anthology called Christmas of Hope:  An Anthology of 7 Christian Inspirational Holiday Stories. We’re publishing just in time for Christmas! It will make a great gift or an encouraging read for you. Below are brief descriptions of each of the stories.
A Collection of Christian Inspirational novellas by 7 different authors, with a little romance and an abundance of sweet, heartwarming moments that are sure to get you in the holiday spirit this Christmas.

Homespun Christmas—by Darlene Panzera. When her family informs her they are only exchanging handmade gifts this holiday season, Cassie Sutherland only has one week to ditch the ones she'd bought at the store and find creative replacements. Can handsome newcomer, Logan Whittaker, offer inspiration and help her rediscover her God-given talents?

O' Night Divine—by Debby Lee. This Christmas someone is trying to vandalize the county museum. Can the night watchman, Dane Cassidy, help Karena Smith find out who it is?

A Christmas Shot—by Julianne M. Haag. Elise Forstner thought she left behind her dreams to be a travel photographer long ago, but when Tom Adessi, her globe-trotting ex-boyfriend, walks back into her life, her heart is torn between her reasons to stay and her longing to go.

Silver Lining—by Robin Gueswel. Anita Crispin longs to open her own hair salon after her irritable boss, Bernie, embarrasses her in front a customer. Can the handsome new realtor show her that maybe God has a different plan?

A True Christmas Present—by Carol Caldwell. Widow Rebecca Blakeley is building her dream art studio, but her neighbor, Walker Rumpf, is fighting her and the game he plays is anything but fair.

Christmas Gone Awry—by Jeri Stockdale. Emma needs to stand up to a slew of opposition if she is to land the open teacher position she longs for. Will her friend, Angie, and new love interest, Nathan, help her to see God has it all under control?

All I Want For Christmas—by Beverly Basile. Janee Peters is shocked to find herself pitted against an old rival when she competes for the marketing position of her dreams. Can her new landlady, Mrs. Martin, and her nephew, Ryan, convince her that God uses all things to work together for good?

The anthology is available for pre-order now as an e-book, and will be delivered on October 24th. Or, if you actually wait and order it on that release date it will bump us up in Amazon’s ratings and make it easier for others to find our book. Print copies will be available soon. Christmas of Hope will also be available through Barnes & Noble online. This link will take you directly to Amazon’s page to order:  https://amzn.com/B01KR4ZPZS 
If you know someone who might be interested in our anthology, please feel free to pass this on to them. If you read it, please take a little time to leave a review on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Goodreads for us. You can just rate it with stars, or leave a written comment as well. My fellow authors and I thank you for your support. God bless you!
Sincerely,

Carol Caldwell


Sunday, July 10, 2016

I’m a Children’s Book Writer, What Am I Doing Writing an Adult Story?




When I began writing, it was natural for me to write for children. After all, it probably was my “inner child” that was the true author. Using a child’s voice to a middle grade voice was easy. Dialogue flew through my brain. Then one day I found myself under the mentor ship of a published author, Darlene Panzera, taking a class on how to write a short story, an adult short story.

I was sure that whatever I learned would translate into middle grade stories. No problem. But wait a minute. We were to create our adult characters, develop the plot, and when we were all done, we would publish them together in an anthology.

I had the kernel of an idea for a middle grade story and I thought I could use that. No. The main character had to be a woman. This story would be an inspirational fictional piece for women. I took my kernel and popped it, turning the main character from the granddaughter to the grandmother.

As we developed our story line, Darlene encouraged us to use Pinterest to pick pictures for inspiration. Pictures of location, people who looked like we imagined our characters to be, and jobs they might do. Looking under “older women” I found a wonderful picture of a woman holding a young child. She had whitish hair and a beautiful smile. She was a grandmother, but pretty. She was my heroine.

I had to find an antagonist to create conflict, so I went to “older men” on Pinterest. The minute I saw a picture of Paul Newman, I knew he was it. Whenever I wrote dialogue for his character, I heard his voice from movies I'd seen, I sensed his movements. He was handsome, but he made a good bad guy.

Developing the story line was a learning experience. For children’s stories, I let the children tell the story. I listened to them and they talked to me. Now I had to plan scenes with goals, conflicts, disasters, emotions, thoughts, and decisions. Darlene pushed us to find the deep point of view, get into the character's inner thoughts and emotions. I wrote and rewrote, edited, and rewrote some more. But in the end, I liked my story. I got to use big words, complicated sentences and adult situations. I was thankful for the experience and when it was finished I could say “It is good.”

There are still lots of children’s stories in my brain waiting to find the light of day, but I have learned that I might not stay to one genre. In the meantime, the anthology will be published in October 2016 as “A Christmas of Hope.” My novella included in it is “A True Christmas Present.” Look for it as an e-book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Monday, January 18, 2016

I am starting out the new year with pictures from my recent book signing and reading at the Silverdale Barnes & Noble. The Community Coordinator was very nice in setting the stage in the children's book section. Very friendly people there.
 These lovely ladies are from MOPS (Mothers of Pre-schoolers). We are all Mentors helping young moms. Standing next to me is Claire, my granddaughter and muse for my story. Thank you friends for coming.



This is the cover of my book. Illustrated by Dianne Gardner in beautiful watercolors.
My friend Cecelia and yours truly.






Claire and I

Claire and I












Claire was asked to sign some of the books also. This was a memorable event for both of us. She is also an aspiring writer.