It is my pleasure to welcome Clean Reads author, Lucie Ulrich back to my blog. You may recall I spotlighted Lucie after the release of The Rose Ring. Since that time, she has written Noah’s story entitled Finding Hope. Noah is the brother of Micah in  The Rose Ring. Welcome back, Lucie!

Nearly sixteen years after relinquishing the rights to his unborn child, Noah Cooper is stunned to discover his daughter, Hope, wants to meet him. With the love and support of his family, Noah sets off from Elk Flats, Montana to Albany, New York, having no idea what changes are in store for him.

Cancer survivor and widow, Beth Peterson, is more than a little nervous to meet her daughter’s birth father. Their initial meeting goes well, but things decline in a hurry when Noah invites Hope to spend time at the ranch without speaking to Beth about it first.

Determined to meet her new family, a battle of wills ensues between Hope and her mother. While Hope longs for a connection, Beth fears losing her daughter to virtual strangers—strangers who live two thousand miles away.

Struggles and misunderstandings abound between Noah and Beth, despite their growing attraction for one another. Noah is ready to commit, while Beth can’t let go of the memory of her husband and the imperfections cancer has forced her to live with.

Will hope, patience, and prayer be enough to pull this family together?

Amazon: http://amazon.com/dp/B071D8LFX6

BN: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/finding-hope-lucie-ulrich/1126230185?ean=2940157307264

KOBO: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/finding-hope-26

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/finding-hope/id1225485559?mt=11

About the author: Lucie Ulrich is an award-winning author of inspirational fiction. Her books are filled with stories of faith, family and forgiveness. She was honored to receive a RONE Award for her second novel, “The Rose Ring.”
A former performing arts director, Lucie now enjoys going on photo shoots with her husband, and taking long (or short) road trips. She continues to find inspiration as she and her husband explore the four corners of the United States.

Website: http://lucieulrich.com/

https://www.facebook.com/inspywriter/

https://twitter.com/LucieUlrich

https://www.amazon.com/Lucie-Ulrich/e/B00K6NC2H0/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1491669701&sr=8-2-ent

As a writer, there are times when it’s hard to get the words from my head onto paper. To that end, I’m always on the lookout for ways to help accomplish this undertaking.

I have had success with the one-hour sprint. You take an hour of your time and write. Having one or several writers race along to see who has the highest word count when the buzzer sounds can be motivating. Even if I end the hour with the lowest word count, I’m still a winner. I have met my objective. My words are on the computer screen instead of running through my mind. Now I can move forward and grow my story.

Last year I decided to up the ante and ‘put myself out there.’ I entered Seekerville’s Speedbo competition. It is a 31-day self-challenge where the writer puts aside the inner critic and produces manuscript pages. No editing allowed. I met the personal goal I had set and proudly display my certificate of participation on my motivation board in my office. A few days ago I signed up for this year and set new goals.

Today is March 1st, and we’re off (cue gunshot sound effect)! I’ll check in at the end of the month and share my results. If anyone is interested in participating or wants more information, here’s the link:

http://seekerville.blogspot.com/p/speedbo-2016.html

February is considered the month of love. I write contemporary romance, so what better time to launch Rachel’s News, my monthly newsletter?

Subscribers will get the scoop first. From new release announcements and cover reveals to works-in-progress tidbits and other news. I will have a monthly giveaway – only newsletter subscribers will be eligible.

I hope you’ll take a minute and subscribe. Just complete your information in the pop-up box here on my website, then follow as I target goal after goal of my writing journey. Your support is welcomed and appreciated.

Inaugural drawing – a $25 Amazon Gift Card to one lucky newsletter subscriber! The winner will be announced in my first newsletter, so sign up now and good luck.

Rachel

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED

Who doesn’t love a good plate of spaghetti? According to the Internet, Americans consume about twenty pounds of pasta per person each year. I know my kids loved it and I made it often. Now they are grown, and I don’t cook as much. Through the years I have tried different recipes. A few years ago I modified a recipe I found for baked spaghetti – a winner with my husband.

To acknowledge National Spaghetti Day, I’m posting my recipe. NSD – a good reason to make spaghetti for dinner tonight!

Baked Spaghetti

1 pound ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

12 small meatballs

24 oz Prego sauce (I use traditional), reserve ½ cup

8 oz spaghetti, cooked

2 cups Mozzarella cheese

Cook ground beef and onion together in large skillet. Defrost meatballs in microwave. Add to meat. Pour sauce into skillet and simmer while spaghetti cooks. Spray 13×9 baking dish with Pam and spread reserved sauce on bottom of the dish. Place drained spaghetti on top of sauce. Cover with meat sauce. Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

ENJOY!

Today is a new beginning. Some look at it as a clean slate, a way to start over. I’ve never been good at keeping New Year resolutions. Because of this fact, I’ve decided to focus on things I can do in 2017 to enrich my life.

I want to set aside more personal time for things I enjoy:
reading
sewing
piano study

I recently realized that when I’m home by myself, there is silence. I don’t know when listening to music disappeared from my life, but it is something I miss. I will combine the mundane with the marvelous and play music while I perform unexciting necessary tasks like housekeeping and cooking.

It has been a while since I’ve attended a live performance of any type. Over the years our family has enjoyed many performances at Atlanta’s Fabulous Fox Theater. Perhaps it’s the drive through Atlanta that has influenced my absence. In 2017, I plan to take advantage of local theater offerings and those of the Cobb Energy Center – it’s in Cobb County, where I reside.

I believe by doing these things I will be happier and maybe even nicer to be around. What are your plans for 2017?

It’s that time of year. Can you feel it? The hustle and bustle of the holidays. Every year I look forward to the arrival of the holiday season. For our family and probably many others, it begins with Thanksgiving Day and carries through to New Year’s Day. Where did the time go this year?

We’re eight days away from Christmas, and I am tired! Except for some stocking stuffers, the shopping is finished, but not wrapped. I have downsized the amount of holiday baking I usually do, and the cookies are ready. I’ve finalized our Christmas Day menu. It sounds like there’s plenty of time to do what is left. Oh, I forgot — I have to work four of those eight nights before Christmas.

This year I have felt disconnected from my immediate family. The work schedules we keep are the culprit. However, we all need our jobs. As a child, I thought family gatherings just happened. Boy, was I wrong! Through the years I have learned it takes effort for these affairs to become a reality.

If any of you can relate, perhaps it is a time issue for you as well and not lack of effort. Luckily, I am not working the nights of December 22-25 (I’m a night shift RN). I plan to make good use of my time. Cooking for my family, with Christmas music playing in the background (of course), watch a movie or two in front of a roaring fire with Christmas tree lights twinkling and maybe finish the Christmas novella I’m reading. How about you?

My wish for everyone this year is that you make the time to be merry. Create some great memories as you spread some holiday cheer. Merry Christmas!

December Recipe – better than fruitcake!
Fruitcake Cookies 
1 box vanilla wafers, crushed
1/2 pound red candied cherries, chopped
1/2 pound green candied cherries, chopped
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 can condensed milk
coconut

Combine ingredients and mold into logs.
Roll each log in coconut. Wrap with waxed paper, then foil.
Place in freezer until ready to use. Thaw for 30 minutes, cut and serve.

Today, I welcome Eli Celata to Rachel’s Words to give us an overview of her debut novel.

Jon Blythe is sick of waiting for his Yoda. After years of hiding his magic, he’s ready to retire from his mortal life, drop out of college, and jump into the world of demon hunters. He just didn’t really expect a bleach blond bookstore clerk with light up toys for weapons. Unfortunately, Jordan is Jon’s only hope. When rogue magic users come to Rochester with a malicious plan, the odd couple strikes out to save the day. Jordan might not be what Jon expected, but between demons and Econ homework, the demons win every time. Wild nights drag Jon further from normal into the world where his father vanished. Maybe he’s becoming an addict. Maybe magic just comes with a price. Either way, he’s hooked.

BUY LINKS:

https://www.amazon.com/High-Summons-Eli-Celata-ebook/dp/B01I2RNIHY/

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/High+summons?_requestid=558766

https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/high-summons

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/648921

https://itun.es/us/MEqCdb.l

Author Bio:

Eli Celata was born in Rochester and is currently attending Binghamton University as a doctoral student.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

https://twitter.com/celata_e

https://elicelata.wordpress.com/tag/web/

https://www.facebook.com/EliCelata/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15449647.Eli_Celata