Welcome Debut Novelist Lisa Jordan!

Tell us about your very first book.

Bed-and-breakfast owner Lindsey Porter prays she won’t run into Stephen Chase when she returns to Shelby Lake. Five years ago, the cop jilted her to marry another woman, and Lindsey fled town. But no sooner does she hit city limits than Stephen pulls her over for a broken taillight. Despite the past, he’s still able to stir up Lindsey’s old feelings for him. Now a widower and single dad, Stephen recognizes a second chance when he sees one. And he’ll do anything to make Lindsey trust in God and take a risk for love—again. 

Read an excerpt of Lakeside Reunion

How long did it take you to get published?

I wanted to be a writer since I was 16, but I didn’t start get serious until writing until about 12 years ago, so it’s been over a decade. When I finaled in the 2009 Genesis contest, doors started opening for me. I received requests for full manuscripts.

Did you find yourself particularly attached to any one character in the story? Why?

I loved Stephen, my hero. When I first wrote him, he was too perfect so I had to give him a few flaws. I loved his heart and compassion. He was loosely based on my own hubby.

Tell us where we can find you on the Web? 

Email: lisa@lisajordanbooks.com

Website: www.lisajordanbooks.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/lisajordan

Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorLisaJordan

My Book Therapy: http://mybooktherapy.ning.com/profile/LisaJordan

I blog at MBT Ponderers: www.mbtponderers.blogspot.com

I blog at WordServe Water Cooler: www.wordservewatercooler.com

Do you have any words of encouragement for other writers not yet published?

• Pray and ask for God’s leading.
• Join My Book Therapy—Susan May Warren and Rachel Hauck know their stuff, which is why they are award-winning authors. 
• Believe in yourself and your abilities.
• Don’t rush the process. Take time to learn the craft. Be sure to submit your absolute very best.

I’m holding a scavenger hunt and lakeside photo contest to promote my Lakeside Reunion release. Plus, blog commenters on my blog hop will be put in a drawing for fun prizes—breakfast basket, Love Inspired Authors basket, autographed copies of Lakeside Reunion. Visit my Lakeside Reunion Contest page for more information.

The token for this blog is woodworking tools.

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Book Review: The Opposite of Art

About the Book:

"A great artist is cast into the icy Harlem River by a hit-and-run driver. His heart stops, and he sees something that defies description. Presumed dead by all who knew him and obsessed with the desire to paint the inexpressible, he embarks on a pilgrimage to seek help from holy men around the globe. But is it possible to see eternity without becoming lost within it? After a quarter of a century, when the world begins to whisper that he may be alive, two people come looking for the artist: the daughter he never knew existed, and the murderer who hit him on the bridge all those years ago."

Amber's Review:

Magical realism and Christian fiction - The Opposite of Art shows that these are not mutually exclusive concepts! Strange and exaggerated - yet somehow familiar - elements abound in this unique and brightly painted canvas of a novel. Dickson's writing is beautiful with all of its symbolism and mystique, serving as a great candidate for meaningful discussion and contemplation.

Ridler, the world-renowned artist, is a man on a mission. His goal is to paint the Glory that he felt in the instant he was flung from a bridge and cast into frigid waters. While the world considers him dead he travels all over in dogged pursuit of something he can't even define and can't seem to paint - a fact that fuels his wanderlust and an ever-increasing depression. After his abrupt "demise" the reader is introduced to him many years later, back in the United States and working with an unusual and wondrous circus troupe. It is through his stories to his circus friends and his flashbacks that the reader journeys with Ridler on his religion-hopping quest.

As much as Ridler's actions suggest otherwise, his life and art affect more than just himself. The man who tried to kill him, the woman he loves, the daughter he never knew, and various other people are all impacted by his struggles and uncertainty. So, too, the reader is one of the many who gets swept away into another world created by Ridler's art - and ultimately the opposite of it.

With its mature themes, violence, drug references, and sexual innuendoes, The Opposite of Art is not an easy piece to read. And with its wide array of symbols, it is not an easy piece to understand or dissect. But it is an intellectually stimulating and provocative read that is very well-crafted, intriguing, and surprising.

*With thanks to the publisher and Glass Road PR for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.*

About the Author:

"Athol Dickson is the publisher of the popular news website, DailyCristo.com, and the author of seven novels and the bestselling memoir, The Gospel according to Moses. His novels of suspense and magical realism have been honored with three Christy Awards and an Audie Award, and compared to the work of Octavia Butler (by Publisher’s Weekly) and Flannery O’Connor (by The New York Times). He and his wife live in Southern California."

You can learn more about the author and his books at his website.

And you can buy his book now at Amazon.com!

*This week's book review does not include a giveaway.*

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Winners!!

Good morning, BB fans! Thanks to everyone who participated in our "puzzling" Friday giveaway! Keep all those facebook and Twitter notifications, coming!

This week's winner of Promise Brides OR A Shepherd's Song, by S. Dionne Moore, is...

Cindy W. (countrybear52[at]yahoo[dot]com)

Cindy W., please use the button in the upper right side of this page to email me with your mailing address so I can forward your information to the author. Then, sit back and wait for your book to arrive.

Thank you all so much for stopping by The Borrowed Book and thank you, Sandra, for your generosity in providing a book!

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Weekly Drawing

Our weekly drawings are changing...we're making them more fun!! As always, followers of The Borrowed Book are automatically entered. HOWEVER...

Now you have several chances to win!

Here's how - instead of leaving a comment, leave the time it took you to complete the puzzle in the comments section. Winners will be drawn from ALL of the times, so the person with the fastest time may not be the actual winner, but by leaving your time, you double your chances.

Want another entry? Tweet your puzzle time and mention The Borrowed Book, get another entry.

Post your puzzle time on BB's Facebook wall and...you guessed it...get another entry!

Post it on your OWN Facebook wall and you could get as many as FOUR entries.

It's all a way to spread the word about the great giveaways on BB. So c'mon! Help us spread the word, and have a little fun at the same time. :-)

This week's puzzle feature is brought to you by one of our own BB staff members, S. Dionne Moore, who is celebrating the release of her latest book, Promise Brides.


Win a copy of Promise Brides or Moore's other November release A Shepherd's Song. Your choice! Please specify which one you'd like.




Promise Brides (3 historical romances in 1):Love is the same, no matter when, no matter where—it never comes without sacrifice. Theodore risks capture for Ellie, but will their hope for a future together be defeated? Can Marylu trust Chester, or is she asking for another broken heart? Will Alaina and Jack find common ground, or will flood waters destroy any possible future? Enjoy three romances from the historic state of Pennsylvania.


A Shepherd's Song: When fiery Renee Dover seeks adventure and searches for a gang of outlaws, she never expects she'll find them. Captured by the gang and certain her recklessness has gotten her brother killed, she escapes into the arms of Tyler Sperry, a quiet sheepherder with a mysterious past. 

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What Three Books Should Everyone Read?

At the American Christian Fiction Writers Conference in St. Louis in September I had the honor of being asked to do a video interview with Andy Butcher and Dave Condiff to be posted on their website Author Corner. I was given the questions in advance so that I could be ready with my answers.

1.      These are the questions I was asked:

2.      What inspires you to write?

3.      What three books should everyone read?

4.      Who is the most influential person in your writing career?

5.      Describe a typical workday.

6.       Do you have a special message for Christian retailers?

As I read over these questions, the only one that gave me pause was number 3. The Bible was excluded from this list, so I began to think of books that I’ve read through the years. As I did, I came to a conclusion that it would be impossible for me to say what three books everyone should read. Some people read romance, while others can’t stomach it. I like suspense, but many don’t.

So, I decided to answer the question by naming three books that had an impact on me. The books I named (which are some of my all-time favorites) were The Stand by Stephen King, Exodus by Leon Uris, and And Ladies of the Club by Helen Hooven Santmyer.

Of these three books, though, the one that really made an impression on me was And Ladies of the Club. This book is set in a small Ohio town right after the Civil War. The story revolves around the lives of the women in the town who belong to a ladies’ club. By the time the book ends, the reader feels like she knows every person in the town. Perhaps the author was able to pull the reader into the characters’ lives because she wrote the book over a period of 50 years. Young girls who you meet in the first pages are grandmothers in the end, and beloved characters have passed away.

When I began to read this book, I had to make myself keep reading. The beginning moves very slowly. Friends who’d read it kept telling me to stick with it, and I did. I was well past 100 pages before I was so hooked I couldn’t put it down.

Of special interest to me is the fact that Helen Santmyer published this book when she was 88 years old and living in a nursing home. It became a best seller and still is today. However, she didn’t live to see her book reach such an honored status. She died soon after publication.

This may not be the type of book you’d enjoy. But I must tell you, it helped me understand the different periods in a woman’s life. I experienced right along with the characters what they went through as they aged and passed through different seasons of their lives. If you enjoy really getting into the characters’ lives, you will agree with me that this book is a gem.

Do you enjoy books like this? Or do you prefer fast-paced books? I would love to know what you prefer.

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Field Trip Feature!!

The staff at The Borrowed Book is excited to announce that we will be making some changes to our posting format. Field Trip Features are just one part of the NEW and IMPROVED BORROWED BOOK!

Based on trips that BB staff have made while conducting research, these little field trip videos are intended to help you, the reader, learn a little bit of the background on the books you love, and you, the writer, glean from our research! Enjoy...

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Writing Advice: Becoming an Author

Anyone who has written for any length of time knows that you do not become an author overnight. It takes weeks, months, even years of learning and networking. But the one thing it takes most is discipline. You can learn the lessons, go to conferences, and know every major editor, agent and author out there, but the reality is if you don't force yourself to write, you won't, and you'll never get published. 

This might seem a small thing for some, but for others, those who talk about their dream of being published, it is a hard reality. Dreamers dream. Writers write. Writing begets getting published. You cannot have one without the other. If you don't have discipline to write, whether you feel like it or not, when you are unpublished, you will struggle mightily once you are.

One of the greatest gifts I gave myself was permission. I began to see myself as a writer. Writing became my job. No, not 9 to 5, but close enough that I adjusted my schedule so that I carved out the time needed to write every day. And, yes, whether I felt like it or not. I gave myself permission to use those three hours as as investment in a dream I wanted to obtain. It meant enough to me that I was willing to sacrifice other things I would have rather done. Let's face it, there are those days when the words don't flow and the temptation to check your email or dabble in Twitter becomes an irresistible outlet for your frustration. Forcing yourself to write through these challenges will help you prove to yourself that you can do it. The writing might not be the greatest and, yes, you might end up cutting more words than you create, but this is where you realize what a good friend editing is. 

Writing takes discipline. There is no boss standing over you and evaluating your performance on a daily basis. If you want to be an author, you will have to first be a disciplined writer. 

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