Note: links may be affiliate links (meaning I receive a small commission if you use the links in my posts at NO extra cost to yourself.)
Wow, I am shocked... I mean, we're here! It's the day that Seize the Love goes out in the world. How crazy is that?!
I'm just so excited for this release. I never really thought that I'd have 4 published stories before I'm even 21 and a quarter. 😜
I am so thankful to God for this... For all of the things He's given me, the experiences He's allowed me, and the way I've learned so much and am still learning so much about the publishing world.
Not only do I get to share about Seize the Love today, but I get to share that there's a very special new website live!
Beyond the Bookery is open!
My dream is coming along quite well, wouldn't ya say?! I'm amazed! The shop's first launch isn't really here, but there are some of my favorite creations for sale now!
There is also a date for the cover reveal for Seize the Fight and submissions opening!
March 4th!
So, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter to get the submission form first! Sign up for my newsletter is here.
We'll get into the release of Seize the Love in just a few, but... Well, I welcome you to the fun that is my ...
Interview with mac!
How has writing helped you grow in your walk with God? Has it shown you more about Him?
Writing has definitely made a big impact in my spiritual life, there’s no doubt about that, and the first thing that comes to mind is trusting His timing. As an author, I take undeniable pleasure in pushing a character to his or her limits—not because I enjoy inflicting pain, but because it will inevitably force them to make difficult decisions and, as a result, come out a better person for it.
That really clicked in regards to the different seasons of life I’ve walked through (and there've been quite a few). I might have absolutely no clue whatsoever what I’m doing or why I am where I am, but in the end, God has a bigger plan, and His ways are not our ways. And if I’m being honest, it brings me undeniable comfort to know that while I’m plodding along the trail of life, God sees the bigger picture. He is the ultimate Author, after all. 😉
If you lost your memory do you think you would still write?
Ooh, that’s a good question. I’m inclined to say absolutely, though. Writing is how I make sense of the world (yes, I’m one of those weirdo author types) and even if I couldn’t remember my past, I’d say the first thing I’d do would be take up a pen and start scribbling. 🤣
If you were given an exotic pet (think more of an animal that should be in the zoo. ;)) what would you do with it? Would you keep it? Send it to a zoo? Or study it for writing research? What animal would you hope it would be?
Ooh, ooh, ooh, can I have a giraffe?? Or a zebra. No, wait— *Proceeds to overthink this way too much* Okay, if I were given an exotic animal, I’d want it to be either a Komodo dragon or a giraffe, and then I’d find a way to get a license to keep them and teach them to do tricks and cool things like that. 😆 House trained dragon, anyone?
Who is your biggest inspiration when you write?
No beating around the bush with you, is there? *Blows out a breath* Biggest inspiration. Ehh . . . I’d say I have several inspirations, and they tend to fluctuate depending on what I’m writing. But my ultimate inspiration would have to be my friends. I have the bestest support group, and when I’m either threatening to roast marshmallows over my flaming manuscript or geeking out over a random plot thread that fell perfectly into place, they’re always there with either a fire extinguisher or a confetti cannon, depending on the situation. 🤣
What is it you want to do when you get a chance to rest?
Rest? What’s that?? 👀 But seriously, I feel like “rest” is so relative. I find rest in a good book and popcorn and a movie. But I also love to workout, hike, or something else physical in my spare time, and none of those are “work” to me. But if somebody burst into the room right now and said “REST TIME!” then I’d probably go outside, soak in some sun, and talk to my chicken. Yes, I have a chicken, and yes, I talk to her. She’s a great conversationalist.
Where is your favorite place to write? (And would you be willing to share a picture of your favorite place to write?)
Favorite place to write? My desk! I have all my pens, my notebooks full of inspiration and information on my current WIP within reach, and plenty of room to spread out those battle plans (which tend to look a lot like random bits of scribbled-on paper and random highlighted plot points . . .). I also have beautiful pieces of pre-order goodies from books I love and some inspirational quotes and Bible verses.
Voila! My desk. 😎
What is your advice to new writers?
Don’t take one person’s writing advice as law. Seriously. Some people will try to tell you that it’s the plotting way or the highway, or in-depth character sketches are vital to you crafting a good story. Well, guess what. I know quite a few pantsers, and I hate in-depth character sketches. 😆
One thing writing is not is one size fits all. Experiment! Try a character sketch before you start drafting if your heart so desires, or write out a 20,000 word plot if it helps keep things in line. Or throw it out the window! There’s no “right” way to write. Trust me, don’t spend all your time trying to write like somebody else. Write like you! And if that means taking the panster route with a complicated character outline and absolutely no idea how your book’s going to end till you get there, then congratulations! You’re doing what works for you. And that’s awesome.
What made you start writing?
Oh, I think it was something along the lines of, “I CAN’T FIND ANYTHING TO READ!” Or, more specifically, anything good to read. I’m a pretty picky reader. I don’t tolerate certain things, and can’t even find others. My fourteen-year-old self was hard pressed to find books that were adventurous and action-packed, didn’t have content, held family and values in high regard, you getting the picture here? Reading shapes who we are, people! Let’s make it worthwhile.
Then, of course, once I got started, I got bitten by the writing bug, which changed my entire world, and here we are! An author to the core and proud of it. 😁
Thanks so much for doing the interview, Mac, it was so much fun!
Now for the fun that is Seize the Love!
About Seize the Love
Honoring the Love of the Savior
Agape. Eros. Philia. Storge
All forms of love… Seize the Love pulls readers into an anthology of stories all showing love. A love that honors God even as the reader flips the pages to find the story of a dying request, a random encounter, finding proof of God’s love, reunited siblings, caring for others, finding hope, love among the hard and easy, and more stories.
No matter the form of love, you’ll find stories sure to warm your heart, bring a smile or a tear, and hopefully remind you of the love of the One who created you.
Matthew 22:37
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Featuring various love stories sure to please the whole family.
About the authors
Madisyn Carlin: Madisyn Carlin is a Christian, homeschool graduate, blogger, voracious bookdragon, and author. When not spending time with her family or trekking through the mountains, she weaves tales of redemption, faith, and action.
Want to connect? https://linktr.ee/madisyncarlin
Andrea Renee Cox: Born and raised in north Texas, Andrea Renee Cox is a born-again child of God who enjoys writing heartrending yet inspirational stories infused with faith. Whether she’s working on historical or contemporary, women’s fiction or romance, she uses her skills in research and writing techniques—as well as a large dose of prayer and guidance from God—at every turn in her writing journey to produce the best story of her ability every single time.
Her first book was published in spring 2021, but she’s published hundreds of articles and over a dozen short stories on her blog, Writing to Inspire, since 2011. Over the last decade, she has copyedited for many distinguished authors and renowned publishing companies in the Christian market. In addition, she has earned two career diplomas from Penn Foster. She enjoys reading books every chance she gets, tutoring middle school students, and taking road trips with her family.
Andrea may be found online at her website, Goodreads, Twitter, and Pinterest.
Website: https://andreareneecox.com/
Faith D. Cox: Faith D. Cox began a love of writing with a fourth grade writing assignment. As an adult, she became a published poet and ventured into the writing of children’s and middle grade books. Her next adventure took her into screenwriting in which she currently has one screenplay produced, two other scripts currently in shopping agreements, and a running list looking for their homes. She writes original, family-friendly, heartwarming books and screenplays that bring tears and laughter to encourage, inspire, and entertain.
Faith is a 29-time, award-winning screenwriter and has scripts that have been nominated for "Best Role for a Leading Woman," "Best Ensemble Cast," and "Humanitarian" awards.
Website: https://faithdcox.com/
A.Y. Daniels: A. Y. Daniels is a young writer with a heart for exciting, sweet, and encouraging stories. She longs to please her Savior with the stories she weaves.
Known as Vonnie amongst her writer-friends, A. Y. loves Jesus, her family, writing, random animals, and various types of artwork. If she isn’t writing or doing school, she’s either chatting with her friends, procrastinating cleaning and blogging, or getting distracted by creating book-covers.
Abigail Kay Harris (that's me! 😉): Abigail Kay Harris is a daughter of the King with a personal degree in book-nerdiness. A sister to seven, her passionate love of the written word and deeper meanings hidden in normal things leads her to spend her time reading, writing, using sarcasm, and defining obscure words. When she’s not chasing words, she enjoys watching shows, classic romance movies, tea, sunrises, and the outdoors, especially mountains, beaches, and forests.
Want to talk? https://linktr.ee/abigailkayharris
C.K. Heartwing: C. K. Heartwing is a homeschool graduate with a heart for God and His Creation. When not working on her studies or writing, she can be found hiking, gardening, working on various art projects, practicing her violin, curled up with a good book, or spending time with her family and dogs. She can be found as c.k.heartwing on Instagram and over on her blog, ckheartwing.wordpress.com.
H.S. Kylian: H.S. Kylian (a.k.a Hannah) has been in love with writing since she was nine, really got into it at thirteen, and discovered the gem of story structure at eighteen. When she’s not writing, she’s daydreaming about writing while doing other things like knitting/reading/photography/studying theology and apologetics, or playing board games and watching movies/TV shows with her family. She lives with her family and a couple of cats and dogs in the beautiful PNW.
Katja H. Labonté: Katja H. Labonté is a Christian, an extreme bibliophile who devours over 365 books in a year, and an exuberant writer with a talent for starting short stories that explode into book series. She is a bilingual French-Canadian and has about a dozen topics she’s excessively passionate about (hint: that’s why she writes). She spends her days enjoying little things, growing in faith, learning life, and loving people. Connect with her on her blog: littleblossomsforjesus.wordpress.com
Deigan Marie: Deigan Marie is a teen writer with a passion for words, and way too many WIPs. She is notorious for singing the only line of a song she knows over and over, quoting movies on a regular basis, and speaking in a mixture of German, French, and Russian. When she’s not talking to herself in a British accent, she’s snuggling with her cat, drinking tea, or dancing in the kitchen. She lives happily ever after in western USA with her family and their wide assortment of rescued pets.
You can connect with her at her blog: https://deiganmarie.wixsite.com/blog
M.L. Milligan: A reader of as many genres as she pens, M.L. Milligan is on a quest to bring about stories that both excite and inspire. Her Lord and Savior is her strongest weapon, her favorite treat either a cup of coffee or a bowl of popcorn with a movie—Okay, and getting a new book. This desert-loving gal makes her home in the Sagebrush state, surrounding herself with endless amounts of books and an increasing number of rescues.
Kaytlin Phillips: Kaytlin Phillips is a homeschool grad who spends her days praising her Savior, reading, writing, blogging, running her writing community called Writers' Vision, and annoying her sisters with random thoughts. She is the fifth child out of seven and resides in the mountains of Western North Carolina.
Her favorite hobbies include writing, reading, hiking, theology, history, blogging, learning the basics of ASL, crocheting, doodling, and anything she does with her sisters or family.
You can connect with her Instagram, Facebook, or at www.sisters-three.com
Angie Thompson: An avid reader and incurable story-spinner, Angie Thompson also enjoys volunteering in her church’s children’s program and starting (but not always finishing) various kinds of craft projects. She currently lives in central Virginia near most of her incredible family, including two parents, six brothers, one sister, and five siblings-in-law—plus four nieces, ten nephews, and several assorted pets!
https://www.quietwaterspress.com/
Lilly Wiscaver: Lilly Wiscaver is a homeschool grad, a participant in the National Bible Bee, a photographer, but most importantly, a follower of Christ. She loves memorizing the Bible, reading, writing, and working on various sewing projects. When not writing, she enjoys working on an organic farm or learning about herbalism from a Christian worldview. She can be found at https://adaughterservingtheking.wordpress.com
We aren't only celebrating the release of Seize the Love this month or even today, the lovely Grace a Johnson has her anthology coming out which leads to...
The Dual Blog Tour & Giveaway
First of all, this is a public announcement, but.... The winner of the Seize the Night giveaway is Debra Guyette! Congratulations! Your prize will be on its way as soon as the rest of the shipments arrive with the book and such. (Shipping has been a mess plus I had to change things around.)
Second, there are awesome ebook giveaways going on in the DUAL blog tour with Grace A. Johnson's Tell Me You Love Me anthology, so be sure to stop by the kickoff here! I will be sharing a post later this month with my review of TMYLM and a giveaway winner of an ebook of StL. The winner will be picked from a random person who comments on this post.
Next off, I am doing a giveaway of one PAPERBACK and pre-order goodies on here today! The giveaway will end on February 21st. How do you enter?
Share about Seize the Love and drop the link in the comments
Share this post with a friend and let me know in the comments
Share your favorite romantic read in the comments
Share your thoughts on Christian romances and what makes a romance a hit or miss for you
Share, share, share! You can share up to 5 times so long as you let me know in the comments
Subscribe to my newsletter & The Bulletin here (let me know you subscribed in the comments)
(Entrants must be 18 and older or have their parent’s permission to enter and be comfortable with providing their email address to receive their goodies as well as a shipping address for the paperback and other goodies.)
Wow, can you believe it?!
That'll be all for now, booknerds!
Abigail