Ann Shorey's "Where Wildflowers Bloom"

Title: Where Wildflowers Bloom
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group/Revell

Cover blurb: The War Between the States stole a father and brother from Faith Lindberg—as well as Royal Baxter, the man she wanted to marry. With only her grandfather left, she dreams of leaving Noble Springs, Missouri, and traveling west to Oregon to start a new life, away from the memories that haunt her. But first she must convince her grandfather to sell the family's mercantile and leave a town their family has called home for generations.

When Royal Baxter suddenly returns, Faith allows herself to hope that she and Royal will finally wed. But does he truly love her? Or will another man claim her heart?

1) How did this story come to you?
I was interested in how women resumed their “normal” lives after the Civil War ended. My great-grandparents settled in Missouri (from Illinois) in 1867, so my interest is personal as well as fictional!

2) Tell us about the journey to getting this book published.
Where Wildflowers Bloom is the first in the Sisters at Heart series for Revell. I wanted to honor the importance of friendship in the lives of women, so each story is about a different protagonist, but their friendship ties them, and the series, together. My editor at Revell liked the idea, fortunately!

3) Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
1) I love to spend time camping in the Oregon desert with my husband. We have a canvas wall tent, and drive to places 40 and 50 miles off the highway, with nothing around but sagebrush and an occasional range cow. We stayed out there for 10 days last summer.
2) I always wanted to play the piano, but had no discipline to stick with lessons. Now here I am committed to contracts that require discipline to meet deadlines. Hmm.
3) I like peanut butter and dill pickle sandwiches. 

4) What are you working on now and what's next for you?
I’m working on Book 2 of the Sisters at Heart series. The working title is When the Heart Heals, and the story is about a woman who’s an herbalist and was a nurse in the Civil War—a time when few women were nurses. After that, I’ll be writing Book 3, tentatively titled Love’s Sweet Beginning.

5) Parting comments?
My tagline is “Yesterday’s Women – Today’s Issues.” Readers will be able to relate to my historical fiction as the characters face the same situations women deal with today. But now we have the resources they lacked. Yet those women persevered. I love their determination.

6) Where can fans find you on the internet?
Please visit my website, http://www.annshorey.com/, find me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/AnnShoreyAuthor#!/AnnShorey  or follow me on Twitter at Ann_Shorey.

Thank you for inviting me to visit your blog! I enjoyed the interview.

Ann Shorey's "The Promise of Morning"

Ann Shorey's "The Promise of Morning"

We're happy to have Ann Shorey with us today talking about her new book, The Promise of Morning.To learn more about Ann and her book, read on!

Your title: The Promise of Morning
1) How did this story come to you? The story was inspired by the lives of my great-great grandparents. My gr.gr. grandfather had been a circuit-rider in his youth, and when he was thirty he married a girl of fourteen. They were my models for Ellie and Matthew Craig in The Promise of Morning. A few of the events in the story are true, but most are fictitious. Guess which ones are which?

2) Tell us about the journey to getting this book published.
The Promise of Morning is the second book in the At Home in Beldon Grove series from Revell. When I submitted the proposal to Revell for Book One, The Edge of Light, I included the next two novels in the proposal, knowing Revell likes series. I met my editor at the Mt. Hermon Christian Writers conference in 2007 and she asked for the manuscript after reading the proposal.

3) Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
The At Home in Beldon Grove series is set in Illinois, and I’ve never lived there. I must add that I have many helpful people “on the ground” in that state to ask when I don’t know about something. I have been there and researched the area I use in the books.
I like liver and onions. Lots of people say “yuck,” but I think it’s yummy. I was going to say, “I love chocolate,” but that’s not too surprising.
A third thing? I often carry a hand-held tape recorder when I take my daily three-mile walks. I use the time to work out scene problems and figure out where I’m going next in my wip. I’m sure people who see me talking to my hand must think I’m a little strange.

4) What are you working on now and what's next for you?
I’m working on Book 3 of the At Home in Beldon Grove series, tentatively titled The Dawn of a Dream. The story features Luellen McGarvie, Molly McGarvie’s oldest daughter, now all grown up. It’s been fun to write—Luellen’s a spunky young woman.

5) Parting comments? If you’re one of those readers who don’t enjoy series because you have to buy the next book to find out what happened after the end of the previous one, the At Home in Beldon Grove stories are for you. Each book has a different protagonist, so they stand alone. But since all the characters live in Beldon Grove, their lives intersect so you’ll know how things are going with characters from the previous books.

6) Where can fans find you on the internet? Please visit my website at http://www.annshorey.com/