Ornamental Graces by Carolyn Astfalk, published on October 6, 2016, has been awarded the Seal of Approval by the Catholic Writers Guild. Books are evaluated by the…
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Author: CAstfalk
Carolyn Astfalk is a wife, mother, and author of contemporary Catholic romances, including her latest, All in Good Time. She formerly worked as a communications director and now works just to keep her head above water. Find her books on Amazon and her other words scattered around the blogosphere and social media.
Modern life is supposed to be better, isn’t it? We’re more productive, faster, more efficient due to technological advances. Aren’t we?
Exhibit A. Turning on the TV
It used to be that I pulled a switch and turned a dial. Now, we have live streaming video – Netflix, Amazon Video, Verizon FIOS. Recently, it took my husband and I twenty-five minutes to cue up the end of a movie because the “Smart” TV kept hiccupping. After resetting the router and starting and re-starting several times, then finally accessing the video via the PlayStation, we were able to watch the brilliant end to Bigfoot: The Movie.
I’m linking to Top 5 Wednesday (#T5W) on Goodreads to share five of my favorite angsty romances. So that we’re all on the same page here, let’s define the term:
adj.: describes a situation or literary piece which contains dark, depressing, angry, and/or brooding emotions from the participating characters.
Robin Patchen has released the second book in her Hidden Truth series, Twisted Lies. Robin is a fellow 10 Minute Novelist, and a terrific writer and editor. I can’t wait to get started on the Hidden Truth series!
She thought they’d never find her. And then her daughter vanished.
Marisa Vega’s life as an adoptive mom in a tiny Mexican village isn’t what she’d dreamed while growing up in New York, but as the target of a man who’s convinced she stole millions of dollars from his financial firm, Marisa believes hiding is her only way to stay alive. When her daughter is snatched and held for ransom, Marisa must discover who really stole the money in order to rescue her.
Months after being kidnapped, tortured, and left with PTSD, Nate Boyle is ready to live a quiet life in rural New Hampshire. When the source of his breakout newspaper article—and the woman who haunts his dreams—begs for help, he gets pulled into a riddle that’s proved unsolvable for nearly a decade.
Can Nate and Marisa unravel the years-old mystery and bring her daughter home?
Maybe it’s merely my perception, but it seems there’s been a surge in Christian romantic suspense, which includes your Hidden Truth series and Finding Amanda. The best-written books in that genre, in my opinion, are those able to resolve the mystery, develop the romance, and deliver a cohesive faith message, perhaps while developing a series-long arc for the main characters, without short-changing or rushing any of those aspects. It’s a lot to juggle. What appeals to you about the genre?
I love suspense. It’s probably my favorite genre to read, because I love to see how characters react under pressure and in fear. I think we can all wear lovely masks when we feel safe, but when our lives are in danger—or worse, when the lives of the people we love are in danger—the masks fall off, and we show the world, and maybe discover for ourselves, who we really are.
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Fish Fry Edition
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Celebrating 20 Years
Our parish, Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Middletown, Pa, has been hosting an annual Lenten fish fry each Friday of Lent (excluding Good Friday) for twenty years! It’s a local attraction of sorts with delicious food and a fun and friendly atmosphere. More than 100 volunteers are required each week to keep the operation running.
If you are surrounded by sufficient silence and solicitude to nourish your creativity . . . I simply cannot relate. My dearly beloved noisemakers are always nearby, sometimes physically clinging to me. Often completing thoughts, let alone sentences strung together to complete a novel, is a struggle of epic proportions.
Even if you, however, have ideal conditions for writing, a change of environment, away from the daily distractions of home or office, could be just what you need to get your creative juices flowing.
Dangling the words “writers retreat” before me when I am unable to participate, tempts me to envy. But maybe your circumstances are different. If they are, I recommend a writing getaway.
Leave a CommentWhile you won’t find the lyrics in the book, real songs were connect to the writing of Rightfully Ours. With this playlist, you can follow…
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