Blog Hop The Next Big Thing

Today
my blog is part of something bigger than usual. Last week, Dana Arcuri invited me to be part of a blog hop called The Next Big Thing. I was not familiar with doing a blog hop, but I decided to try it because it is an opportunity for me to bless other authors.  It has been a prayer of mine to be an encourager to others.  This is a small step, a small help to show you the amazing talent that's out there that God is blessing our amazing readers with.

The purpose is to help readers discover the next great book or author; i.e., the one they will be compelled to read or the author whose work they simply can't put down.

Check out Dana's book debut and blog:

http://writing4theheart-n-soul.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-next-big-thing-blog-hop.html

Dana Arcuri is a Contributing Author for Inspired Women Succeed, published in May 2011.  She is the Director of Prayer and Contributing Writer at Write Where It Hurts.  Currently, she is writing Harvest of Hope: Living Victoriously Through Adversity, which brings an inspirational message of hope, healing and overcoming hardship.

What is awesome about this blog hop is the exciting adventure to learn about authors from various genres and styles.  One may never know the possibilities in our future. Her work might just be the next big thing,
or perhaps mine, too. Whatever the case, we are living out our passion for writing and making a positive difference within our world.

 Another part of this blog hop involves me answering ten questions about my book:



1.         What is the working title of your book?

 My Mother's Kitchen.  Volumes 1-4 are presently published.

2.         Where did you get the idea for your book?

My amazing publisher once saw an old photo of my great-grandfather and said it would make an awesome story someday.   I thought about a woman finding such a photograph for the first time, looking into the haunting eyes, wondering about the life of the man.   Thinking about stories my mother and I talked about through the years, I wanted to share the feeling of a close-knit family and how they build one another up by remembering stories from their past.

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3.         What genre does your book fall under?  

Women's inspirational fiction.

4.         Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?  

Diane Lane or Meg Ryan for Kate.  Kathy Bates for Kate's Mom.  

5.         What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Join Kate and her Mom as they share warmth, love and the answers to some of life's issues in the comfort of her mother's kitchen. 

6.         Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?  

I am represented by Helping Hands Press.

7.         How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Probably about a month.  Each volume takes a little over a month. 

8.         What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Books by Karen Kingsbury or Debbie Macomber. 

9.         Who or what inspired you to write this book?  

Having a very close relationship with my dear Mom.  Being like best friends through the years, sharing stories from her youth.  Mom's childhood was quite the roller coaster ride, some good, some bad with an abusive, alcoholic father, but also loving Italian family and vivid imagination to get her through.  Some of the things I write about in this series really happened, such as the strange visitor one Christmas Eve, the creepy, old house with an odd man who was misunderstood.  I take some truths, add in a dash of imagination and hope to spark in my readers the sense of old-fashioned family values missing from today's society.

10.       What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Each volume deals with truth interspersed with fiction.  For example, the first volume deals with an Italian immigrant when he first arrives in America.  The next volume shows a character much like Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird.  Another volume deals with 9-11 and the horrors of that day. 

      Next week, please take the opportunity to hop on over to the blog listed below.  Grace Yee is a very talented, new young author.  Her short story series The Woman in Scarlet is amazing with a fairy tale type flair.

 http://www.graceyee.blogspot.com/

My name is Grace, lover of books, keeper of secrets, and cookie connoisseur. Being the youngest of four children has given me insight and passion for the people and activities which form the pattern of my day-to-day life. Dancing has given me a physical escape while writing allows me to put that passion into words. Being homeschooled, I've had the opportunity to step into a magical wardrobe before breakfast, go on covert missions in Wal-Mart, and chasse' to the Nutcracker. So allow me to share with you the stories and novels which color my dreams, quotes that ricochet in my mind, and characters that I hope you will love just as much as I do.


Thank you all for joining in this fun venture and please check out the blogs of the amazing women I've shared with you today.