Interview with Gail Pallotta & spotlight of Stopped Cold...

We're happy to have Gail Pallotta with us today talking about her novel Stopped Cold. To learn more about her and her book, read on!

Back cover blurb:

Things aren't what they seem in peaceful Mistville, North Carolina.

Margaret McWhorter enjoys a laid-back Freshman year in high school swimming and hanging out with friends—until the day her brother, Sean, suffers a stroke from taking steroids. Now he's lying unconscious in a hospital.

Anger sets a fire for retribution inside her, and Margaret vows to make the criminals pay. Even the cop on the case can't stop her from investigating. Looking for justice, she convinces two friends, Jimmy and Emily to join her in a quest that takes them through a twisted, drug-filled sub-culture they discover deep in the woods behind the school. Time and again they walk a treacherous path, and come face-to-face with danger.

All the while Margaret really wants to cure Sean, heal the hate inside, and open her heart to love.

Please give us the first page of the book.

My first day as a Freshman at Meriwether Christian High School in Mistville, North Carolina, the sun shone on a small plant with pink blossoms on the window sill and gave Mrs. Hornsby’s English class a cheerful look. She stood in front of pine straight back chairs scrunched together in the middle of the room, the tables shoved up against the wall at the end of it.

“Today we’ll form a circle and get acquainted.”

Her voice sounded bubbly and kind, but I wanted to escape to the pool or a beach. She directed us with her hands as we scraped chairs across the laminated floor and took our seats. That’s when I noticed Jimmy Willmore staring at me. As self-conscious as a possum in a dog show, I peered at my lap. Was he checking me out? I raised my head and glanced at him.

He shifted his gaze to the blackboard.

Mrs. Hornsby ran her hand through her short, salt-and-pepper-colored hair then twirled around. “Let’s start with you.” She gestured toward a pretty girl with dainty features and long, blonde hair.

“I’m Sally Dumont, a transfer student from North Wilkes.”

The other kids gave their names, but I let them fade into the background while I thought about Jimmy Willmore. Then it was my turn. “I’m Margaret McWhorter, and I entered Meriwether in middle school.”

What do you do for fun when not writing? Get together with friends and family, go to lunch with hubby, swim and go to the beach every chance I get.

What are you working on now?  I’m excited about a new adult romantic suspense novel I’m working on.

Please tell us five random things we might not know about you.

I’m a fan of Elvis Presley. I listen to his CD, “An Evening Prayer,” three days a week on the way to the pool.

I love fresh fish, especially eating it on the Back Porch in Destin, Florida.

It’s hard to find my shoe size, so I rarely throw away a pair of shoes no matter how old and ragged looking they get.

I have Lyme disease, but thanks to Jesus and a wonderful alternative doctor, I’m up and kicking.

I cook Southern recipes handed down from three generations.

Why did you choose to write this book?

As a college student then later as a young Mom, I knew of children, teens and young adults affected in a devastating way because they didn’t always excel. The results ranged from heartache in children over not winning a race or making all As to suicide attempts and suicide in young adults. I’m not sure if these sad situations crossed my path more than they did that of others or not, but the more pain I witnessed, the more I wished these children, teens and young adults had believed they did not have to be the best, but do their best. Even though the drive seemed to originate from different sources - parents, siblings, peer pressure or within - I wanted to tell them that God had given each of them a gift or gifts to use for Him, and they didn’t need to be #1. The theme rattled around in my head for years until finally I put it in Stopped Cold.

What one thing about writing do you wish non-writers would understand? 

It takes a lot of hard work.

What is the toughest test you've faced as a writer?

Marketing, especially balancing it with time to write.

What do you hope readers to take away from your novel?

Standards set by others pale when we use our talent to glorify God. We’re all created in His image, but each of us has a particular gift or gifts to use for Him.

What accomplishment(s) are you most proud of, writing-related or not?

My wonderful, Christian daughter.

Bio:

Award-winning author Gail Pallotta’s a wife, mom, swimmer and bargain shopper who loves God, beach sunsets and getting together with friends and family. She’s a former regional writer of the year for American Christian Writers Association, a 2013 Grace Awards finalist and a 2017 Reader’s Favorite Book Award winner. She’s published six books, poems, short stories and two-hundred articles. Some of her articles appear in anthologies while two are in museums.

Where else can readers find you online?

I have a special twitter site for the high school in Stopped Cold and would love to have people follow it. It’s Meriwether Christian @MeriwetherCS. (https://twitter.com/MeriwetherCS)

Website - https://gailpallotta.com

Blog - https://www.gailpallotta.blogspot.com

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/AuthorsandMore

Twitter - Gail Pallotta @Hopefulwords  

Gail Pallotta's "Stopped Cold"

Cover blurb:  Margaret McWhorter enjoys a laid-back Freshman year in high school flirting with Jimmy Willmore, swimming and hanging out with friends—until that day. Her brother, Sean, suffers a stroke from taking a steroid. Now he’s lying unconscious in a hospital. Margaret’s angry at her dad for pushing Sean to be a great quarterback, but a fire of hatred burns inside her to make the criminals pay. Looking for justice, she takes Jimmy and her best friend, Emily, through a twisted, drug-filled sub-culture. A clue sends them deep into the woods behind the school where they overhear drug dealers discuss Sean. Time and time again they walk a treacherous path and come face to face with danger. Even the cop on the case can’t stop them from investigating. All the while Margaret really wants to cure Sean, heal the hate inside, and open her heart to love.

1)      How did this story come to you?
First of all, I wanted the book to entertain young people. The most fun books I read were Nancy Drew/ Hardy Boys mysteries. The three amateur sleuths in Stopped Cold are reminiscent of the famous teen detective.

Through the PTA, I worked with children in grades one through eight. I’ve been a Sunday school teacher, swim team coordinator and an after-school literary instructor. I’ve seen a lot of pain when a child couldn’t live up to being number one. Whether the pressure came from within, peers, siblings or parents, the need to “be the best” rather than “do your best” often hurt and sometimes led to destruction. I wanted to let young people know they don’t have to be number one for God to love them. He’s given each of them a gift or gifts to use for Him.

Children today face a number of problems, but I wrote about steroids. One reason teens say they take them is to enhance athletic performance, which indicates they have a drive to be number one. Even though the use of steroids is going down, according to the latest statistics I could find on the internet there are around 125,000 who say they’ve used them. I imagine there are some who’ve used them, but didn’t say they did.

2)      Tell us about the journey to getting this book published.

This book insisted on being published. I wrote a draft for it ten years ago. Then I polished it up and took it to a writer’s conference, where I met an editor who liked it. Unfortunately, it wasn’t right for her list. However, she edited my proposal and encouraged me not to give up on this book, but to keep writing and re-writing until it was ready to be published.

I followed her advice then attended another writers’ conference. There I met an author who advised me to send it to an editor she knew. The publishing company kept the book for one year then rejected it. I tossed it in a drawer, where it stayed gathering dust until I joined American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) two years ago.  

After my ACFW critique group finished the book I was working on, I had nothing to submit, so I pulled out Stopped Cold, and they critiqued it. Then I sent out a few queries, and Stopped Cold was accepted. When I received the publisher’s contract, it asked for a fee, so I declined to sign it. Later I attended the James Scott Bell writing seminar in Nashville, Tennessee. I took another book to work on while I was there, but when I came home, Stopped Cold called to me once again, and I made changes to it, applying what I’d learned from Mr. Bell. Then Lisa Lickel and I started critiquing. After I made a few more corrections, I emailed queries to several publishers as well as a couple agents. Now the book’s where it was meant to be—with Madison Connors at Front Porch Romance.

3)      Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
I’m an Elvis Presley fan.

In college I had a friend who owned a small airplane. He picked me up in the sheep pasture in a valley near the mountain college we attended, flew to a town about fifty miles away, and took me out to dinner.

When I tried to learn to cross-stitch, I sewed the picture I was working on to the leg of the jeans I was wearing and had to snip the threads to get it off.

4)      What are you working on now?
I have a couple short stories coming out soon. I just finished a romantic comedy with mystery and suspense and am writing a book about a young woman with a mysterious, undiagnosed illness.

5)      Parting comments.
Two things. I was excited to learn last week that Stopped Cold is a best seller on All Romance E Books, and I appreciate you having me on your lovely blog.

6)      Where can fans find you on the internet?
My Web site is http://www.gailpallotta.com
My blog is http://www.gailpallotta.blogspot.com
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/AuthorsandMore

 

Clash of the Titles & Gail Pallotta

Clash of the Titles, Where Authors Compete and Readers Judge

The literary website, Clash of the Titles, launched with a bang, and has increased in momentum ever since. They’ve had phenomenal authors, from historical romance writer, Lena Nelson Dooley to fantasy writer extraordinaire, Janalyn Voigt. Today Jennifer Slattery, Marketing Representative for Clash of the Titles, will highlight six COTT participants.


Gail Pallotta competed in our best Weather/Nature category with her sweet e-book, Love Turns the Tide. “I was thrilled to have my excerpt chosen for Clash of the Titles,” Gail said. “It offered exposure for Love Turns the Tide in such a unique way. Even though putting one’s work up for voting is difficult, I liked the idea of letting the readers decide.”

In Love Turns the Tide Cammie O’Shea suffers through a broken engagement and relocates to Destin, Florida to take a new job. Struggling to get over her heartache and loneliness, she tries to renew her faith in the midst of petty crimes committed at her condo. When Vic Deleona comes to her rescue, she grows fond of him. But she gets an offer to return home. Amid fear and confusion she must make difficult decisions.

Does her fear paralyze her? Cloud her judgment? Guess you’ve got another book to add to that rapidly growing list, don’t you? Find out more about Gail and her novel at her personal website, http://www.gailpallotta.com/ and her blog, http://www.gailpallotta.blogspot.com/

Jennifer Slattery is a freelance writer, columnist, novelist and the marketing representative for Clash of the Titles. In 2009 she won first place in the HAWCN writing contest, book category and in 2010 she placed second in the Dixie Kane and fourth in the Golden Pen, Inspirational category for both. She has a weekly marriage column on the Reflections in Hindsight website and has been published in numerous other publications. You can find out more about her and her writing at http://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.com/

Gail Pallotta's "Love Turns the Tide"

We're happy to have Gail Pallotta with us today talking about her book, Love Turns the Tide. To learn more about Gail and her book, read on!

Publisher: Awe-struck E-Books.

Cover blurb: Cammie OShea faces a traumatic split-up with her fiancé and has to leave family and friends to take a new job in Destin, Florida. Heartbroken and alone, she dreads meeting her new boss, editor of The Sun Dial, a new newspaper. But her real source of angst turns out to be Vic Deleona, the influential real estate tycoon she must write about to generate interest in the paper. She refuses to open herself to another painful relationship, and he attempts to court her. When she and a friend have break-ins at their condos, Vic comes to their rescue. He even launches his own investigation into the crimes. Cammie grows fond of him. But, she gets an offer to return home to her old job. Will Vic solve the crimes and win Cammie’s heart, or will she leave Destin?

1)How did this story come to you?
For some people finding the right person to love isn’t easy. After I grew old enough to notice boys and had friends noticing them, I learned of hurtful dating relationships and break-ups from my girlfriends and guy friends. There are some men and women who meet, date, walk down the aisle and live happily ever after. But others get their hearts broken again and again before they find the right person. Cammie is one of those people. But God had a plan for her life just as he does for each of us, and I wanted to show that. My idea was to create an entertaining book of faith and hope that took the reader to a romantic place.

2) Tell us about the journey to getting this book published.
 I didn’t have an agent, so I searched on the internet to see if there were any publishers accepting unsolicited manuscripts. I found Awe-Struck Publishers. They were having a contest for short, inspirational romance. I entered and won the prize, which was publication.

3) Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
1. I love to spend the day bargain shopping with my daughter.
2. I once attended a cattle auction. At the time I put out a magazine for a cattle association.
3. My favorite exercise is swimming.

4) What are you working on now and what's next for you?
 I’m writing a teen novel and another Christian romance set in the Florida Panhandle.

5) Parting comments?
I’d like to mention two bookstores that are now selling E-certificates for Love Turns the Tide. The certificates have codes that can be downloaded to a computer or an e-reader. The stores are Eagles’ Wings in Destin, Florida, and Sweet Sprit in East and West Cobb County, Georgia. I’d also like to thank you for having me on your blog.

6) Where can fans find you on the internet?
My Web site is http://www.gailpallotta.com. My blog is http://www.gailpallotta.blogspot.com/  and my book can be ordered from my publisher at http://www.awe-struck.net/. It’s in the inspirational category.