Ann Acton lives with her husband and children in a tiny town in Washington state. She loves the feeling of Christmas and usually finishes her shopping on Christmas Eve. She is also the author of The Miracle Maker.
Liz Adair, a native of New Mexico and mother of seven, lives in southern Utah with Derrill, her husband of 50 years.
A late bloomer, Liz published her first mystery (The Lodger) just as AARP started sending invitations to join. After writing three in the Spider Latham series, Liz moved into romantic suspense. She feels writing in that genre doing so is a service project. "I remember when I was a young mother with all those kids and a slender budget," she says. "I was so grateful for books that let me go places and meet people who carried on adult conversations That's what I want to write--cheap vacations."
"Amy's Star" brings both Liz and her writing to Kanab, Utah. Look for new Spider Latham mysteries set in Kanab.
Terry Deighton lives in Washington, the state not D.C., with her husband, Al. Their six children are grown and gone, and pets tend to complicate life. When she is not visiting her children and grandchildren, writing and revising, again and again, she works as a substitute teacher. Mr. Goetz in the Tweaks series is wiser and cooler, but he's made up, so it doesn't count. Mrs. Deighton started out to be a high school English teacher, but raising kids turned into a full-time job. During those years, her dream of writing books for young people grew until she had to do something about it. Her Tweaks series is a fulfillment of that dream. Her love of Christmas naturally prompted her to write "Whit's End" in this book and "Just Say No-el," a companion novella to these three stories.
Q & A With Author Terry Deighton:
. Describe
yourself in 50 words or less.
My
name is Terry Deighton. I am the married mother of six and the grandmother of
three. I’m short and stout like Winnie the Pooh. I have dark hair and hazel
eyes. My outside isn’t very remarkable, but what’s inside continues to surprise
even me.
2.
What do you love most in the world?
In
all the world, I love my husband and children the most. Out of this world, I
love God the most.
3.
What do you fear most?
I
hate to admit that I fear rejection and heights most.
4.
What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?
My
largest unfulfilled dream is becoming an author of books for young people. I am
writing and self-publishing a series of books to make that dream come true. The
first three (or four by now) books of the Tweaks series are available on
Amazon.
5.
What is the hardest thing you've ever done?
The
hardest thing I’ve ever done is nail the ridge cap on our new roof. I hate
heights.
6.
Now that we've gotten to know each other, tell me a story. It can be long or
short. From your childhood or last week. Funny, sad, or somewhere in between.
Just make sure it's yours. What's your story?
Christmas has always been special to me.
When I was young, I loved the magic, music, and mystery of the season. As I
grew older, I began to understand the deeper meaning of the holiday. I also
began to understand that Christmas didn’t just happen. My mother worked
fulltime and still managed to bring excitement and fulfillment to the season.
When I was thirteen, I decided it was time to give back. I enlisted my brother
and sister’s help to play Santa for our parents. We pooled our meager funds and
bought them an electric ice cream maker. I found the perfect stocking, a pair
of red long johns with a leg for each of them and a drop seat for an opening.
On Christmas Eve, we sneaked back out into the living room after our parents
went to bed. We filled the stocking and hung it on the back side of our pass
through fireplace and arranged their gift on the hearth. The look of surprise
on my parents’ faces instilled a love of playing Santa in me that lingers to
this day, almost fifty years later.
Connect with the Authors here:
These three Christmas novellas will get you into the holiday spirit.
Christmas Gift - Christmas for Amanda Grover is usually a chaotic marathon in search of the perfect gifts. This year, she thinks she's got it all under control—until she's roped into doing service on Christmas Eve. What should be a simple night turns into a series of chaotic events and a gift she never expected.
Amy’s Star: A Spider Latham Christmas Story - A new star rises above the southern Utah town of Kanab and draws some surprising visitors on Christmas Eve.
At Whit’s End - When Whitney Saunders and her husband buy their first home, it jump starts her desire to make everything, especially Christmas, perfect. She soon finds out it’s more work than she thought, and she begins to wonder what perfect really is.
Snippet At Whit’s End:
[Whitney]
shuffled through the red and golden leaves across the front lawn to the [real
estate] agent's car. There, she retrieved her artist's pad and pencil set from
the backseat and positioned herself to sketch their new home. She drew light
lines to block in the shape, paying little attention to the conversation behind
her. Whatever the cost or the sacrifice, they were going to build something
wonderful together in this place. She added in the windows and gabled peaks,
including the little dormer of the perfect room for a nursery. . . . Then she drew what she already thought
of as her studio jutting out from the dining room.
.
. . the aesthetics of the house compelled her to continue her drawing. She
studied the bay window of the living room. She could almost see a Christmas
tree twinkling behind the glass. Without thinking much about it, she added the
tree then penciled in strings of lights along the gutters. Christmas in their own home would make up for
being three thousand miles away from either of their families, and when she
finished this drawing, it would make the perfect Christmas card.
Ten fun
facts about Terry Deighton
110
Favorites:
Favorite
color: Blue
Favorite
food: Cheesecake
Favorite
book: The one I’m reading at the moment
Favorite
child: I’m not telling.
Favorite
spot in the house: My recliner
Favorite
holiday: Christmas
Favorite
season: Fall
Favorite
scent: Fresh baked cookies
Favorite
sound: Rushing water
Favorite
weather: Warm and windy
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