Friday, December 19, 2014

Swoon:  1. To be overwhelmed by ecstatic joy. 2. To faint.

3. A state of ecstasy or rapture.

You know, around Christmas time, I tend to get so busy that one of the main ways I am able to relax and unwind is to watch Hallmark Christmas movies with my hubby or read Inspy romance. Why? Well, because I love stories that make laugh, cry and … swoon!  And let’s face it, when it comes to romantic fiction, the only one who can make a woman swoon is the hero. So, what exactly does it mean to “swoon”? Well, Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines it as follows: 

To become very excited about someone or something; to become enraptured; to suddenly become unconscious. 

Now, I contend that when it comes to romantic heroes, all women swoon. Just not in the same way. For instance, the Novel Crossing blog recently ran a poll among Christian romance readers as to the “Five Swoon-Worthiest Heroes in Christian Romance, and there were no less than 25+ contenders. Now that’s a lot of swooning if I must say so myself, proving that the parameters for “swoon-worthy” are as diverse as the number of heroes in Christian romance.

So, why am I telling you this? Well, yes, I’m pretty darn proud that my bad-boy Collin McGuire from A Passion Most Pure made it to the top five because frankly, he needed the boost. Trust me, if you know anything about Collin regarding his lack of athletic ability and the heckling he takes from his brothers-in-law in the next five books, you would know why! And … I also thought it’d be fun for you to check out the heroes who were nominated in the first place as well as the top five, so here’s the link: FIVE SWOON-WORTHIEST HEROES IN CHRISTIAN ROMANCE.

But … the main reason I mention the poll above is because Goodreads is currently running the “Swoony Awards,” and last year, Christian romance came in very strong among the thousands of secular nominees, so I thought I would ask for your help in putting Inspirational Romance at the top of the lists once again.

  Yes, I would LOVE for you to vote for my two books, Dare to Love Again and Surprised by Love and my Christmas historical collection by the Seekers, Hope for the Holidays Historical Collection and Contemporary Collection, and you can do so EVEN IF you haven’t read them. But the good news is you can vote for up to 100 books/authors that you love and you do NOT have to vote for me to enter the contest!! 

Anyway, all you do is go and vote for your favorite authors, up to 100 choices, and if you would be kind enough to vote for my two books in the process, I would be MOST grateful. Just go to this GOODREADS VOTING LINK, scroll down and go through the list to click on VOTE for each of your faves. To vote for me, just search for “Julie Lessman,” and if Surprised by Love and Dare to Love Again are not on the first page of the top 100 books, just click on the word “next” at the bottom of the page right beneath the 100^th book, which will take you to the next 100 nominees.  

CONTEST!!

And … to THANK YOU for voting for Christian romance (whether or not you vote for me in the process), just indicate you have voted in the Rafflecopter box below, and you are entered to win your choice of a signed copy of any of my books, including my Charity and Mitch Christmas novella, A Whisper of Hope, ebook or a printed manuscript (since it’s not in paperback yet). NOTE: CONTEST ENDS DEC. 31^ST.

Here’s the link, and HAPPY VOTING!! 

VOTE FOR CHRISTIAN FICTION AT GOODREADS VOTING LINK, THEN ENTER THE CONTEST BY TELLING ME YOU VOTED IN THE BOX BELOW! a Rafflecopter giveaway