Tag Archives: Flower in the Hills

How it All Began — Flower In The Hills

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At this point in my career, I enjoy looking back with amazement of all that God directed, and perpetrated, in my writing life. That’s what this post is all about.

First Published Novel

Flower in the Hills will always be very special to me because it was the first of my titles to ever be published. But it didn’t come easy. At the top of my goals list (year after year) I would write these words:

“This year I will hold my published book in my hand.”

I never gave up, but each year I wrote out my list and placed those words at the top. Then it finally happened! The manuscript was purchased by Silhouette for their “First Love” series. Heady stuff for a newbie like I was at the time. They titled it Blossom into Love.

Clean Teen ReadsOf course, I thought they would purchase my next offering. And the next after that. Nope. Never happened. Quite disheartening. I made good royalties from the title because Silhouette was large enough to sell foreign rights! Nice!

The shelf life was amazingly short. That too, was a rude awakening.

Technological Advances (Amazon)

BUT THEN – technology made extreme advances. Years after this book was published, I regained my rights and I changed the title to Flower in the Hills. Clean Teen ReadsGave it a new cover and offered it on Amazon. The cover wasn’t all that great, but I was moving ahead. (I have no quittin’ sense, as Grandma used to say.) I’m a great believer in pushing ahead even when all the “ducks” are not in a row.

This was the launch of the Classic Collection, and Flower in the Hills was joined by five other titles in the collection!

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Flower in the Hills

The New Face Lift

This past year, my very special novel received yet another face lift, and an even better cover was designed. Flower in the Hills never looked better. And Latina’s amazing, heartwarming story still flourishes! After all these years, this novel has found a whole new reading audience. Now that’s an awesome blessing.

What a journey it has been. Not an easy journey, but one I would never trade.

 

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Read Chapter 1 of Flower in the Hills right HERE

Free Download

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Teens and the Coveted Driver’s License – Or Is It? Part II

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In Part I of Teens and the Coveted Driver’s License – Or Is It?, statistics were cited that showed large numbers of teens these days are delaying getting their driver’s licenses.

Although I can understand some of the reasons given for this delay, I personally wasn’t aware of this new trend. I mentioned in that post that it’s not evident here in the Midwest where I live. The teens that I know are all still eager to get that coveted driver’s license and gain new-found freedom.

Clean Teen ReadsLingering Dreams

This got me to thinking about the teen drivers in my teen novels. For instance, Lingering Dreams opens with a scene where the main character Kirsten Nicholson is driving the family Jeep over rutted country roads in the rain. She’s on her way to pick up the stranger who is coming to work at their Oklahoma ranch. Because Kirsten, a senior in high school, is a rancher’s daughter she’s already been driving for many years.

 

 

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Serena Iverson in Oklahoma Exile is staying with relatives so there is no opportunity for her to get behind the wheel; however, her cousin, Amber June drives. And as with Kirsten, Amber June who lives in a farming community, began driving early in her teen years.

 

 

Clean Teen ReadsForever is Over

The main characters in Forever is Over are eighth-graders, still too young for their licenses, so there’s more bike riding in this story plot.

 

 

 

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Driving plays an important role for Latina in Flower in the Hills. Due to her having had to drive to another town earlier in the day, she’s returning to the small Ozark community of Zell’s Bush after dark. It’s just her and the little special-needs girl, Althea. It’s the point in the story when she meets head-on with the most terrifying moment of her young life. The frightening scene could not have played out had she not been able to drive. (Interesting, huh?)

Believe me, I wasn’t consciously thinking of all this when developing these different plots. However, I find it interesting how it plays out.

Clean Teen ReadsBrought To You By The Color Drab

And then there’s Race Paloma in Brought To You By The Color Drab. The occasion of obtaining his driver’s license is pretty much forced on him. It isn’t his idea at all.

Race lives in the ghetto and the only cars he ever drove were stolen. But when he and the law collide, he has the chance to rectify his situation by taking a job as a driver for a blind piano tuner.

The fact that he has to do a rush job on getting his license is an implied, and not explicit, facet of the plot. However; it plays a momentous role in the story.

The Holder of the Keys

No matter whether the driving experience is delayed (as the cited statistics prove), or begins early as with Kirsten Nicholson, it’s a fact that driving is a prevalent part of our current culture. And I believe the vast majority of teens look forward to that day when they step into adulthood—becoming the holder of the keys!

How About You?

Where are you on your journey to becoming the holder of the keys? Leave your feedback in the comment box below.

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My newest release, Brought To You By The Color Drab, is a story that has A LOT to do with a teen driver. A teen who is almost FORCED to drive!

You can read the first two chapters right here. Just click below.

Download Chapters 1 & 2 of Color Drab FREE

Just CLICK HERE!

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