Sauerkraut Cake by Sophie on Preorder

The next book of mine scheduled for publication is Sauerkraut Cake by Sophie. I'm very excited about this book. It's already had a lot of attention because of the unique dessert. Actually, my mother used to make a sauerkraut cake from her home-canned jars of kraut. It was delicious and just tasted like a moist chocolate cake. When the Old-Timey Holiday Kitchen series was successful enough that the organizers decided to do a second season, I immediately thought of this recipe and story.

Link to Sauerkraut Cake by Sophie

Some of you may remember that my book for this series in 2021 was Walnut Cake by Wylene. The book has been quite popular and is still selling well, especially on Kindle Unlimited. I still have people asking about it or mentioning how much they enjoyed it. I think Sauerkraut Cake by Sophie will be just as popular if not more so. Sauerkraut Cake by Sophie is available for preorder now and will release on September 13th.

Link to Walnut Cake for Wylene

 

In my new novel, Sophie Zimmermann and her father leave Illinois to make the long, hard journey on the California Trail to Genoa, near Lake Tahoe in Utah Territory, to join her aunt's family. Sophie finds men interested in her for the first time, and she ends up taking her aunt and cousin's advice to let Baxter Cobb court her. Baxter is a wealthy businessman that any woman should appreciate, so why can't Sophie forget Abel Boles, the first man she meets in Genoa. Can Sophie's unusual recipe for a sauerkraut cake somehow end up showing her what she should do?

The audible version will also be available soon. Douglas Birk headed up the production as he has all of my books that's had dual narrators. This time, however, Jennifer Groberg wasn't available for the female part, and Victoria Phelps, who narrated Peace in the Farmer's trilogy, filled in. I can't wait to see what listeners think about this new pair.

________________________

 Falling Away

Now we beseech you, brethren... That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of  Christ is at hand, Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away at first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped... (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4a).

As the end draws near and Christ's coming gets closer, the Bible tells us that there will be a great falling away from the faith. Satan will entice many away from the truth and gather them for himself. He will convince people that they don't need to go to church, and they don't need God. As this happens, things will become more and more difficult.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

There are even preachers who will be part of this movement. They will water down the Word of God so that it offends no one, and everyone can feel good about themselves. They will be all-inclusive, all-accepting. Congregations will look just like the rest of the world, and all sorts of sin will be tolerated if not accepted.

And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many, And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold (Matthew 24:10-13).

All of this encourages selfishness, and that means a lack of sincerity in loving others. People will be greedy and backstabbing, out to get as much as they can for themselves. Truth, honesty, and integrity become things of the past on many different levels, and Christians will need to be bold and courageous if they keep to their faith, and we don't betray our Lord.

________________________________

  Taking Stock Is Here!

  

          Taking Stock, the fifth and final book in the Idioms & Cliches series, has just been released. This one features Emily Rose and Robert's granddaughter from Got Your Goat and is set in 1929 and 1930.

Link to Taking Stock

 Gage Bradford met Allison Johnson soon after he graduated from law school. Theirs had been a whirlwind romance. He had fallen hard and fast and wooed her with all the charm he could muster. In a month, they were engaged, and in six weeks after that, they were married. Moving to Washington, D.C., he set up his law practice and soon moved up the ladder to success. But when the stock crashed and he lost everything, they moved to her inherited farm in the Appalachian Mountains. Now, instead of Allison feeling out of place in high society, he was inept and out of his element in a remote mountain cabin. However, it would turn out to be a learning experience in more ways than one, and he’d change more than he ever imagined.

         Taking Stock is available on Kindle, KU, Audible, and in print. I have a new narrator for the Audible production of the book, and I love the job Jared Walters has done. He has a smooth, melodic voice that is still expressive, and I could listen to him all day. I'm thrilled that he's agreed to produce another of my upcoming books, but more about that later.

         Besides the MAPs (multiple-author projects) I'm writing, this is the last series I'll publish for over a year. In fact, the next thirteen books I'll release will all be MAPs. I'm excited about them, too, but I've loved writing the Idioms & Cliches series. They hold a special place in my heart, and I  hope they will in yours as well.

__________________________________

Barnabas and Antioch

Barnabas was a member of the tribe of Levi and from Cyprus. Some Jews had moved from their homeland years earlier. There had been a Jewish colony in Cyprus as early as 330 BC.  However, Barnabas wasn't his given name. His real name was Jonses. The apostles gave him the nickname of Barnabas because it meant encourager, and that fit the man.

Luke described Barnabas in several positive ways:

He was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith (Luke 11:24).

Barnabas was also a teacher (Luke 13:1) and a prophet (Luke 14:14).

He was an apostle through whom God worked miracles (Luke 15:12).

Many of the believers fled Jerusalem and scattered over the known world after Stephen was martyred, and some settled in Antioch of Syria.  As a result, there was a spiritually strong group of believers there. The Christ-followers in Jerusalem sent Barnabas to Antioch to check on the congregation there. Barnabas saw a great need for teachers, and he sought out Saul to help with the task. Together, the two men worked within the church at Antioch. In fact, it was here that the new name was first used for such believers, "Christians."

Oh, how our churches could use teachers and encouragers like Paul and Barnabas today. Might God be calling you to be one or both of those?

______________________________

Teasers at the End of a Book 

I'm seeing more and more teasers at the end of the books I read. These are usually the start of the next book in the series or another book this author has written. Either way, it is designed to hook the reader into buying another book. I don't like such teasers for several reasons.

First of all, it makes the length of the book I bought misleading. Padding the page count with unrelated material makes it look longer and more in-depth than it is. In a way, this is a bit dishonest and misleading. It certainly doesn't make me respect the authors more or consider them as acting professionally. If I want to read more, I can always read the first chapters of a new book on Amazon.

I never read the teasers. If the book I just read makes me want to read another, I will get it. However, if it doesn't, no amount of teasing will induce me to buy another one. The teasers just leave me hanging, and I never like that. I want endings to everything I read. As a writer, I have never included a teaser, and I don't intend to.

_______________________________

Pour Out

 Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord" (Lamentations 2:19a).

Water pours quickly. When you spill water, you don't have much time to clean it up before it's running everywhere. That's how we should be with God. We should run to Him quickly, pouring out our problems, our hurts, and our joys. He's not only there for us at all times, He wants us to bring everything to Him. He wants to be the One we run to. He tells us to pour out our hearts to Him like water, freely telling Him everything, holding nothing back.

Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us (Psalm 62:8).

People might fail us, but our Lord never will. We can trust Him with everything. He wants what's best for us, and He operates out of perfect love. Living in a fallen, sinful world, can bring many difficulties, but God will be our refuge, an ever-present help in times of trouble. Although He knows all our thoughts and secrets, He still wants us to pour out our hearts to Him. By doing so, we will find the solace and comfort that brings peace that passes all understanding.

__________________________________

 Series Positions and Sales

Writing in a MAP (multiple-author project) has been a learning experience on many levels, but I've found most of it to be good. I published my first one in December 2021. Walnut Cake by Wylene was part of the Old-Timey Holiday Kitchen series, and it was a great experience. 

Energized by that success, I signed up to participate in five more MAPs toward the end of 2022.  I discovered an interesting bit of information in one of the long series.  Amazon's book pages are usually set up to show twenty books. In one of the series, I have books 20 and 22. Book 20 has sold twice as many preorders as book 22 because it is shown on the page, but the customer must click on "see all" to see book 22. If you're an author who might participate in MAPs you may want to take note of this fact and not sign up for books higher than 20. If you're a reader, please make sure you're seeing all of the books.

On reflection, I suppose this is why many of the MAPs run a follow-up series separate from the first one. This has happened on most of the ones I've seen that continue into another year with new books and promotional events. However, the one where I have book 22, is a first-time, popular series. I still have hopes it will go well, and everything will work out fine.

_____________________________________________

Pentecost in the Bible

Pentecost was one of the three required Jewish holidays each year. Every male Jew living within twenty miles of Jerusalem had to go to the city at that time. However, thousands of other Jews also came from all over. Everyone got the day off for Pentecost.

Pentecost means fiftieth. It came fifty days after the celebration of Passover. Pentecost commemorated the day when Moses received the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, which many believe to have come fifty days after the Israelites left Egypt.

Pentecost was also the Jewish equivalent of Thanksgiving Day. It came at the end of the harvest season and was sometimes called the Feast of Harvest or the Feast of Weeks. The harvest began at Passover and lasted for fifty days. In this part of the world, the weather was often better for traveling in June for Pentecost than in April for Passover.

Pentecost is also important because it's the time the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples while they waited in Jerusalem as Jesus had instructed. Because of the indwelling and working of the Holy Spirit, Peter spoke to a crowd and had at least 3,000 converts that day. Can you imagine the excitement of that?

_______________________________

Taking Stock Preorder

  

           Taking Stock, the fifth and last book in the Idioms & Cliches series, is available for preorder on Amazon and will publish on August 16. This one features Emily Rose and Robert's granddaughter from Got Your Goat and is set in 1929 and 1930.

Link to Taking Stock

 Gage Bradford met Allison Johnson soon after he graduated from law school. Theirs had been a whirlwind romance. He had fallen hard and fast and wooed her with all the charm he could muster. In a month, they were engaged, and in six weeks after that, they were married. Moving to Washington, D.C., he set up his law practice and soon moved up the ladder to success. But when the stock crashed and he lost everything, they moved to her inherited farm in the Appalachian Mountains. Now, instead of Allison feeling out of place in high society, he was inept and out of his element in a remote mountain cabin. However, it would turn out to be a learning experience in more ways than one, and he’d change more than he ever imagined.

For the Audible version, I have a new narrator this time. Jared Walters has already finished the project, and we're waiting for ACX to approve and publish it. I'm very excited about this one. Jared has a smooth voice that  I love listening to, and he's from Tennessee, so he did a good job with all the different accents in this book. I'm hoping he will agree to do more projects because he would be great narrating my westerns too.

__________________________________________