Count the Nights by Stars is Available for Preorder!

Happy September, all!

The year is flying by and March 2022 will be here before we know it! What's happening in March 2022?!

This!

Here's a blurb about the story:

Count your nights by stars, not shadows. Count your life with smiles, not tears.

1961. After a longtime resident at Nashville’s historic Maxwell House Hotel suffers a debilitating stroke, Audrey Whitfield is tasked with cleaning out the reclusive woman’s room. There, she discovers an elaborate scrapbook filled with memorabilia from the Tennessee Centennial Exposition. Love notes on the backs of unmailed postcards inside capture Audrey’s imagination with hints of a forbidden romance . . . and troubling revelations about the disappearance of young women at the exposition. Audrey enlists the help of a handsome hotel guest as she tracks down clues and information about the mysterious “Peaches” and her regrets over one fateful day, nearly sixty-five years earlier.

1897. Outspoken and forward-thinking Priscilla Nichols isn’t willing to settle for just any man. She’s still holding out hope for love when she meets Luca Moretti on the eve of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition. Charmed by the Italian immigrant’s boldness, Priscilla spends time exploring the wonderous sights of the expo with Luca—until a darkness overshadows the monthslong event. Haunted by a terrible truth, Priscilla and Luca are sent down separate paths as the night’s stars fade into dawn.

Stay tuned for more details in the coming months about Launch Parties, giveaways, and more! In the meantime, click the Tab for my website for Preorder options!

Blessings,

~Michelle

Selah Awards Finalist!

 

Hey everyone,

I want to share my exciting news with you! UNDER THE TULIP TREE is a Finalist in the 2021 Selah Awards Contest, sponsored by the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference! For a complete list of Finalists, go to the BRMCWC Facebook page. Winners will be announced at the conference later this year. 

If you haven't had a chance to check out UNDER THE TULIP TREE, now is a good time to do it! Here's a blurb about the story:

Sixteen-year-old Lorena Leland’s dreams of a rich and fulfilling life as a writer are dashed when the stock market crashes in 1929. Seven years into the Great Depression, Rena’s banker father has retreated into the bottle, her sister is married to a lazy charlatan and gambler, and Rena is an unemployed newspaper reporter. Eager for any writing job, Rena accepts a position interviewing former slaves for the Federal Writers’ Project. There, she meets Frankie Washington, a 101-year-old woman whose honest yet tragic past captivates Rena.

As Frankie recounts her life as a slave, Rena is horrified to learn of all the older woman has endured—especially because Rena’s ancestors owned slaves. While Frankie’s story challenges Rena’s preconceptions about slavery, it also connects the two women whose lives are otherwise separated by age, race, and circumstances. But will this bond of respect, admiration, and friendship be broken by a revelation neither woman sees coming?

Thank you, Readers and Judges, for choosing UNDER THE TULIP TREE! It's truly an honor. 

For purchase information, visit my website! 

Blessings,

~Michelle

Exciting News and a Giveaway!

UPDATE: The winners of my giveaway--Susie Q and dpruss--have been notified via email. THANK YOU to everyone who left a comment. And WELCOME to everyone who signed up as a NEW subscriber to the blog!! I appreciate you all very much! I'll have more giveaways in the coming months, so stay tuned! ~Michelle

Hello, Friends!

I want you to be the first to know my exciting news! 

I've just signed a contract with Tyndale House Publishers for my NEW historical time-slip novel, tentatively titled HOLD ON TO THIS MOMENT. Whoo-hoo! Release date to be determined, but look for it sometime in 2022! I'll share more details in the coming months, but for now I want to celebrate and you're invited to join the fun!!

I'm giving away TWO signed copies of UNDER THE TULIP TREE to TWO lucky subscribers of my blog (which is also my newsletter)! Here's all you need to do to be entered:

1. Become a subscriber if you aren't already subscribed! It's easy to do. On the upper right hand corner of this page, you'll see a box that says "Sign up to receive my blog in your inbox." Type in your email address and submit. Done! If you're already a subscriber, you're already entered in the contest.
2. Next, leave a comment on this post and tell me the name of your all-time favorite novel. (Nope, it doesn't have to be one of mine. Haha!) But remember, only subscribers who leave a comment will be entered in the contest. (If you're reading this in an email, click the link to the blog and pop over here to leave your comment.)

On Saturday, February 6, I'll draw ONE winner from the list of subscribers and ONE winner from everyone who leaves a comment. I'll notify the winners via email and post an update here. 

Thank you for your continued encouragement and support. I appreciate each one of you more than you'll ever know!

Okay! Let the fun begin!

Blessings,

~Michelle

Calling All Subscribers

As I'm gearing up for the September 8th release of my novel, Under the Tulip Tree--a book that deals with racial issues in 1936 & 1860s Nashville--I'm very aware of the atmosphere and division between the races. It's heartbreaking. As a woman who comes from a family of mixed heritage--my father's family is Hispanic and my mother's roots go back to Germany--I love diversity. Wouldn't it be a terribly boring world if we all looked the same?

Yet because of the tension we're currently experiencing, I feel strongly that prayer is desperately needed. For our country and our people, but also for Under the Tulip Tree. This is not a plea to pray for increased sales or anything of that nature. It's a prayer request from my heart, because I know the enemy would love nothing more than to distort and destroy the message of the book, which is forgiveness, reconciliation, and togetherness.

When I began writing Under the Tulip Tree in 2018, I had no way to know the cultural climate the book would be releasing into in 2020, but GOD did!! A friend reminded me of that wonderful quote from Esther 4:14: "for such a time as this." My hope and prayer is that my book will join the conversations happening all over the world. That it will be one pebble on the wide road to Togetherness and Unity.

That's where YOU come in, faithful subscribers to my blog! I'll be posting a bit more in the coming months, and I'd love it if you'd simply say a prayer for me, the book, and the issues each time my blog lands in your email inbox. If you'd like to join my Prayer Team for the book, here's a link to it's Facebook page.

As a way of saying THANK YOU for your prayers and support, I'll also be doing SPECIAL GIVEAWAYS exclusively for Subscribers to this blog!! I appreciate each of you more than you will ever know.

If you haven't subscribed to my blog yet, there's plenty of time!! Just type in your email address in the box to the right. Done!

Every blessing,
~Michelle