Journal Jots – Blog

 Video Contest is

Below My Blog Post,

So Please Scroll Down.

(EXTRA-POINT OPTIONS ADDED!) 

***

HAPPY BELATED THANKSGIVING, EVERYONE!!

 

2.) VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTIAN AUTHORS in “THE NEW 2014 CHRISTIAN FICTION” POLL, STRICTLY FOR CHRISTIAN FICTION. You can vote for up to 100 authors, so vote for your faves and if you do and include DARE TO LOVE AGAIN, I’ll give you extra points in my VIDEO CONTEST when you click on that option in the Rafflecopter box. Here’s the link: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/35291.NEW_2014_Christian_Fiction_#18059982

 

 

***

VIDEO CONTEST  

HERE!!

(NOTE: EXTRA-POINT OPTIONS ADDED!) 

 

One Woman. Two Men.
One stirs her pulse and the other her faith.
But who will win her heart?

— A Light in the Window

OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!

It’s here … the video for A Light in the Window is finally HERE!! And not just “here,” my friends, but “here” with a contest to kick off both my $ .99 CHRISTMAS SALE for the A Light in the Window E-book AND the release of the paperback version too!! 

I am reallllly excited to see what you guys think about the video, especially your preference as to the two male models who play Patrick O’Connor and Sam O’Rourke. Since I haven’t run a Journal Jots contest in a long time, I thought this would be the perfect occasion for it, don’t you?, To enter the contest, all you have to do is watch the video, then tell me which of these bad-boy rogues turns your head for the title of hottest rogue in the Southie neighborhood!

THREE CHANCES TO WIN!!

Prizes:

1st Prize (person with the most points) — gets a character named after them or a loved one in my next book, a signed copy of that book, and a $50 gift card.

2nd Prize (random drawing where every point  earned is an extra chance to win, but even one point can win) — gets a character named after them or a loved one in my next book and a signed copy.

3rd Prize (random drawing based on 1 point per name entered) — gets a signed copy of any of my books.

 

Contest Rules:

To enter, scroll down to the Rafflecopter box at the bottom of today’s post and click the box that confirms you have watched the video, then click on the next option to vote for your favorite rogue. That’s ALL you have to do to enter for the two random drawings. But if you want to win the top prize by accruing extra points, then check out the other options listed in the Rafflecopter box and GO CRAZY!! The contest runs from November 11 through December 31st, with the winner announced in my January 3rd Journal Jot.

***

NEED E-BOOK OR PAPERBACK AS A CHRISTMAS PRESENT TO ARRIVE BY CHRISTMAS? (Or the last mail day before Christmas for the paperback?) Well now you can!! 

When you gift a Kindle or paperback book, you have the option to have the gift delivered immediately or to specify a future delivery date. To give a gift, please visit the AMAZON page of the book you wish to buy and click on the “Give as a Gift” button located under the “Buy” button on the product detail page for the book you wish to gift.

By default delivery date is set to “now” and your gift notification will be delivered immediately to the recipient’s e-mail address. HOWEVER … if you wish the gift sent at a future delivery date (i.e. Christmas morning for the e-book), the e-mail confirmation of your gift will be sent to your recipient between 12 a.m. and 3 a.m. Pacific Time on the date you selected. You may also choose to instead send the gift notification to your own e-mail address upon ordering, which you can then forward, or print out and deliver, whenever you choose.

NEED A SIGNED BOOKPLATE FOR PAPERBACK CHRISTMAS GIFTS?

Simply purchase a paperback of ALITW or any of my other books as a Christmas gifts, and I will send you a signed bookplate with a special note to the person to whom you are giving the book as a gift. All you have to do is contact me directly through my website by at least ten days before Christmas to allow for mail delivery.

So, you ready to have some fun?? Click on the video link below, turn up your volume and click on full screen, then watch the video and indicate you have done so in the first Rafflecopter box at the bottom of this post.  And don’t forget to vote for your favorite rogue!!

Ready? Get set? GO!!

“A LIGHT IN THE WINDOW” VIDEO

 

LINK TO PURCHASE ALITW E-BOOK FOR 99 CENTS!

 

LINK TO PURCHASE ALITW PAPERBACK FOR PRICE REDUCED BY ALMOST $2.50 PER BOOK!

 

Hugs and HAPPY WEEKEND!!

Julie a Rafflecopter giveaway

 Video Contest is

Below My Blog Post,

So Please Scroll Down.

(EXTRA-POINT OPTIONS ADDED!) 

***

“Prayer is a shield to the soul …”

— John Bunyan

 

2.) VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTIAN AUTHORS in “THE NEW 2014 CHRISTIAN FICTION” POLL, STRICTLY FOR CHRISTIAN FICTION. You can vote for up to 100 authors, so vote for your faves and if you do and include DARE TO LOVE AGAIN, I’ll give you extra points in my VIDEO CONTEST when you click on that option in the Rafflecopter box. Here’s the link: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/35291.NEW_2014_Christian_Fiction_#18059982

 

NOVEMBER 18-26, 2013:

HO-HO-HO!! Join Jamie Carie, Colleen Coble and ME for a Christmas-romance & $100 gift-card giveaway!! This is your chance to stack up on great Christmas books for the holidays, so be sure to come on by!! Here’s the link:

http://jamiecarie.com/huge-christmas-give-away

 

 

***

VIDEO CONTEST  

HERE!!

(NOTE: EXTRA-POINT OPTIONS ADDED!) 

 

One Woman. Two Men.
One stirs her pulse and the other her faith.
But who will win her heart?

— A Light in the Window

OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!

It’s here … the video for A Light in the Window is finally HERE!! And not just “here,” my friends, but “here” with a contest to kick off both my $ .99 CHRISTMAS SALE for the A Light in the Window E-book AND the release of the paperback version too!! 

I am reallllly excited to see what you guys think about the video, especially your preference as to the two male models who play Patrick O’Connor and Sam O’Rourke. Since I haven’t run a Journal Jots contest in a long time, I thought this would be the perfect occasion for it, don’t you?, To enter the contest, all you have to do is watch the video, then tell me which of these bad-boy rogues turns your head for the title of hottest rogue in the Southie neighborhood!

THREE CHANCES TO WIN!!

Prizes:

1st Prize (person with the most points) — gets a character named after them or a loved one in my next book, a signed copy of that book, and a $50 gift card.

2nd Prize (random drawing where every point  earned is an extra chance to win, but even one point can win) — gets a character named after them or a loved one in my next book and a signed copy.

3rd Prize (random drawing based on 1 point per name entered) — gets a signed copy of any of my books.

 

Contest Rules:

To enter, scroll down to the Rafflecopter box at the bottom of today’s post and click the box that confirms you have watched the video, then click on the next option to vote for your favorite rogue. That’s ALL you have to do to enter for the two random drawings. But if you want to win the top prize by accruing extra points, then check out the other options listed in the Rafflecopter box and GO CRAZY!! The contest runs from November 11 through December 31st, with the winner announced in my January 3rd Journal Jot.

***

NEED E-BOOK OR PAPERBACK AS A CHRISTMAS PRESENT TO ARRIVE BY CHRISTMAS? (Or the last mail day before Christmas for the paperback?) Well now you can!! 

When you gift a Kindle or paperback book, you have the option to have the gift delivered immediately or to specify a future delivery date. To give a gift, please visit the AMAZON page of the book you wish to buy and click on the “Give as a Gift” button located under the “Buy” button on the product detail page for the book you wish to gift.

By default delivery date is set to “now” and your gift notification will be delivered immediately to the recipient’s e-mail address. HOWEVER … if you wish the gift sent at a future delivery date (i.e. Christmas morning for the e-book), the e-mail confirmation of your gift will be sent to your recipient between 12 a.m. and 3 a.m. Pacific Time on the date you selected. You may also choose to instead send the gift notification to your own e-mail address upon ordering, which you can then forward, or print out and deliver, whenever you choose.

NEED A SIGNED BOOKPLATE FOR PAPERBACK CHRISTMAS GIFTS?

Simply purchase a paperback of ALITW or any of my other books as a Christmas gifts, and I will send you a signed bookplate with a special note to the person to whom you are giving the book as a gift. All you have to do is contact me directly through my website by at least ten days before Christmas to allow for mail delivery.

So, you ready to have some fun?? Click on the video link below, turn up your volume and click on full screen, then watch the video and indicate you have done so in the first Rafflecopter box at the bottom of this post.  And don’t forget to vote for your favorite rogue!!

Ready? Get set? GO!!

“A LIGHT IN THE WINDOW” VIDEO

 

LINK TO PURCHASE ALITW E-BOOK FOR 99 CENTS!

 

LINK TO PURCHASE ALITW PAPERBACK FOR PRICE REDUCED BY ALMOST $2.50 PER BOOK!

 

Hugs and HAPPY WEEKEND!!

Julie a Rafflecopter giveaway

Ezra opened the book. Every eye was on him,

and as he opened the book everyone stood.

Then Ezra praised God, the great God, and all the people responded,

“Oh, YES! YES!, with hands raised high.

And then they fell to their knees

in worship of God, their faces to the ground.

— Nehemiah 8:5-6

I gotta tell you, being the passionate person I am, my heart actually leapt in my chest when I read the reaction of God’s people to praising God. Because that is EXACTLY how I feel about Him—hands raised and heart full of gratitude to a God who pulls me out the pits.

Every. Single. Time.

And you know what? When it comes to “passion,” I may be a little extreme compared to the norm, but I truly believe that extreme passion for God is not only necessary for the success of our prayer life and witness, but I personally believe it is EXACTLY what God is looking for in His people.

I mean, come on … He only called one person in the Bible “a man after His own heart,” and that lucky stiff was King David. Only David wasn’t “stiff” at all in his love affair with God. Oh, no—he spent time with Him, sang to Him, wrote songs, poems and love letters to Him, and even embarrassed his wife, Michal, when he danced before the Lord without abandon, totally unconcerned about making a fool of himself. Because you know what?? I honestly believe “making a fool” of one’s self for God is one of the highest callings out there, and I embrace it totally, in all my passion for Him.     

In fact, I talk about this in one of my favorite scenes I’ve written, which appears in A Passion Denied, a conversation between John Brady and his good friend and spiritual mentor, Father Matthew McHugh, discussing God’s forgiveness:

***

Father Mac exhaled and sat down beside him. He placed a hand on his shoulder. “He does it all the time. I know a man who committed adultery and then murdered his lover’s husband, but God forgave him.”

Brady looked up with shock in his eyes.

A faint smile shadowed Matt’s lips. “In fact, he called him a man after his own heart.”

“King David?”

Father Mac nodded. He removed his hand from Brady’s shoulder and took a drink of his coffee. He wrinkled his nose. “Cold. Want me to warm it up?”

Father Mac didn’t wait for his answer, but dumped both cups and replaced them with hot. He set them on the table and sat back down. “King David was an unusual character. Loved God with all of his heart, but had this unfortunate flaw.” Father Mac paused to taste his coffee, then quirked his lips. “He was human. For instance, one day he’s dancing before the Lord in a linen ephod, not giving a whit that his wife thinks he’s making a fool of himself. Then down the road a bit, he’s lusting after a married woman he sees taking a bath on the roof of her house. And what does he do, this man who loves God with all of his heart? He takes her to his bed, then has her husband sent to the battlefront to be killed.”

Father Mac leaned in, his gaze intent. “He committed adultery and murder, yet he’s still the only man in the Bible God refers to as ‘a man after His own heart.’ Now why is that, I wonder? I’ll tell you why. Because David was a man who had a love affair with God. Imagine that—emotionally involved with the God of the Universe. Trusted Him, worshiped him, sought after him—and all without restraint. Did he mess up? You bet. Did he repent? With all of his heart, aching inside whenever he offended his God. Why? Because he had a Father-son relationship with him, loved him and wanted to please him.” Father Mac hesitated, slowly tracing his finger along the rim of his cup. He finally raised his eyes to capture Brady with a fixed stare. “Just like you, John.”

 ***

Oh, the joy of being “emotionally involved with the God of the Universe”!! Trust me, it’s more than heavenly—it’s powerful! Remember the Scripture “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. — James 5:16? Yeah, well for a very long time, I missed one very important word in that sentence that changes EVERYTHING. The “effectual FERVENT prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Definition: showing great intensity of emotion, feeling or zeal

Synonyms: impassioned, zealous, burning, earnest, vehement, ardent

That’s right, LOTS of emotion and feeling in our prayers help make them effective. Why? Because God is a passionate, emotional Being who wants to connect with us on every level, especially in our prayers. I happen to believe this SO much, that when I pray for others, I literally close my eyes and make myself focus hard on what I’m saying, almost feeling their situation in my mind, until I feel my heart connect with God in compassion and love and desire to see change in that person’s life. In fact, if I catch my mind wandering halfway down the page, not even realizing who I have just prayed for, I actually start over, lasering each person once again with my passionate focus.

Friends and family often ask me to pray for them, many times saying “your prayers just seem to work, Julie.” You know what? I’ve noticed that too, and since I know God is “no respecter of persons,” meaning He doesn’t have “favorites,” I can only attribute it to the passion and fervor I put into my relationship with Him and into my prayers, connecting with God just like King David did—from the heart. God’s heart.

And when one’s heart “bleeds” for God, the “righteous” part of that Scripture just comes more naturally, from a heart who truly wants to please their Father with obedience to His Word, doubling the power of one’s prayer to “availeth much.”

For you emotional types out there, this will come easily if you aren’t doing it already. But for you more strait-laced and reserved lovers of God, give it a shot. Get emotional with the God of the Universe in your prayer closet, and then look out—you may just find yourself going a little bit crazy for Him in the passion department too. 🙂

Hugs,

Julie

A Light in the Window

is in

PAPERBACK!!!

Yes, it’s true, and WOW, is it GORGEOUS!!! And what makes it even better, is that my incredibly talented hubby is almost finished with THE BEST video you have ever seen, I promise!! Of course, I may be a wee bit prejudice … 😉 But I’ve already shown it to one very special friend (and you know who you are!!), who actually teared up, so I take that as a good sign. Trust me, we scoured iStock for a model for both Patrick O’Connor and Sam O’Rourke, and WOW … did we hit the jackpot, especially given there wasn’t a lot from which to choose. So check back here in about two to three weeks, and I will have the video up and running for you, and I do believe it’s worth the wait.

I hope. 😐

Anyway, for anybody out there that would like to buy a paperback copy of A Light in the Window for Christmas as a gift, you let me know, and I will send you a signed bookplate to paste inside for whomever you plan to give it to, okay? Here’s the link to order your copy if you are so inclined. And please note that I wanted to offer it at a much lower price, but since I published this myself through CreateSpace (Amazon’s publishing company), they give you a set price that you can’t go under, which is why the price is higher than I hoped. But it’s actually cheaper than the cost of my other Revell books if you bought them in a bookstore, so YAY!! And, of course, the ebook is still half price at $3.99. So here’s the link — I would LOVE it if you would share it on your FB and Twitter pages!

 CLICK HERE FOR PAPERBACK VERSION OF

A Light in the Window

 

AND, THEN … drum roll, please … for those of you who have been waiting for the less expensive e-version of ROMANCE-ology 101, it’s finally here as well!! The paperback is $6.43, but the e-book is only $2.99, so I hope some of you will check it out! Here’s the link:

CLICK HERE FOR E-VERSION OF

ROMANCE-ology 101:Writing Romantic Tension for the

Inspirational & Sweet Markets

I hate to do this two weeks in a row, but I am going to scoot out early to get some writing done on my OVERDUE book rather than spend it writing a blog. BUT … I’ll be back to writing blogs soon, I hope! Prayers appreciated for the completion of book 3 in the Heart of San Francisco series, Surprised by Love.