A Christmas-y Update

Apparently blogging on schedule is not my thing during December. XD Sorry to leave you all in the lurch, though I have been having a great time celebrating and preparing for Christmas. ❤

My family and I are doing Advent again this year, and this time we’ve added watching Bible project theme videos to our traditions. It’s been a beautiful time of reflecting on all facets of Christmas and looking forward to Christ’s second coming. And just hanging out specially as a family. ❤

(This week, the third week of Advent, is all about joy!)

Another thing that has been sooo special was watching the annual Behold the Lamb concert put on by Andrew Peterson and guests. My oldest sister and her family brought the livestream and some snacks over to our house, and we all sat around enjoying it. This is the second year we’ve watched the concert, and it’s quickly become a special tradition. ❤

I’ve also been running around like crazy putting together Christmas presents. It’s really been more fun than stress for me (which is a blessing!), and I’m so excited about what I’m giving my family that I keep almost spilling secrets. XD (80% of my gifts are books… What does that say about me? 😉 )

I spent a delightful few hours in Barnes and Noble the other day. Seeing brand new releases I’ve only seen on Goodreads or at the library in person was simply amazing. I kept crowing over book editions, and at one point I was hugging a book with one hand and holding eight others in the other arm. *shrugs* *grins sheepishly* It was pure bliss, even if I looked like a sociopath straight from the library basement. 😉

We’re still at the decorating stage of a “Christmas cage”, but it’s quickly filling up with my presents. 😀 (And I keep almost telling siblings what they are…)

I finally published my short story prequel to Kiera! It’s free on Amazon (for forever), so have yourself a merry little copy. (There’s a snowball fight and sweetness and a really, really good gift.)

For the third year in a row, I’m participating in an epic gift exchange, so I got to go to the post office yesterday. I did have to stand in line for a while, but there were so many package-laden people around to watch that it was actually fun. 😉 And the kids who had been dragged along to stand in line with their parents were hilarious. Also, it seemed like a few people were in a contest of who could carry the biggest package, and I think we need handcarts just for that. XD A couple of my friends and a random stranger will be getting mail from me this weekend. 😉

Speaking of exciting, I made two huge batches of peppermint bark yesterday and today Anna and I put together little packages of them. They turned out soooo cute! I, unfortunately, don’t have a picture but imagine little clear bags (with cute tags) full of brown and white and red yummies. ❤ Also, breaking really thick chocolate with sharp shards of peppermint on it is really good for your self-esteem but not so much for your hands. You might feel like a superhero once it’s all broken. 😀

While I was writing this post, my parents and older sister just dragged in a Christmas tree, and it smells amazing. ❤ I’m so excited!

As I finish up this post, I want to share one last thought… Jesus is more than just the baby in the manger, but the manger is still worth celebrating. The God of the universe, the Savior of the world, loved us so much He came to live with us and die for us. And it all began with the Baby. Immanuel. ❤

Merry Christmas!

 

I’ll *probably* post one more time this week, and after that, I’m taking an official break for the week of Christmas. I’ll be here to reply to comments though. 😉

Plate Update: Buddies, Minibooks, and Paper Quilling

November was so great. ❤ My state is finally observing autumn, which is quite lovely! November’s FULL plate was stacked high with Thanksgiving food and some Christmas treats that snuck their way in there somewhere. 😉

Anyway, here’s a quick update on my full plate last month. 😉

Pleasure read:

Kate’s Conundrum (five stars)

Stanley in Space (read-aloud to younger sisters)

Omega City (four stars)

The Princess in Black and the Science Fair Scare (four stars)

Restart (fours stars, and wow!)

Things I Never Told You (four stars, buddy read with Mikayla!)

Beta-read:

Live Without You 😀 😀

Answered:

Interview questions from Kaylee’s Kind of Writes

Questions about the Black Friday sale

Googled:

Description tips

Colored pencils (not graphite)

Scantrons

Crying in your sleep

Downs Syndrome

Butterfly anatomy

Peppermint bark (so yummy!)

Ham and Cheese Roll-ups

Branches of the military

Christmas jokes

Selective mutism

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms movie

The Lego Movie 2 trailer ❤ (I’m weirdly excited about this movie…)

Wrote:

8,689 words on “Imperfect”! 😀

This month’s newsletter and a special one for Black Friday

Blog posts (the top five being Meet My New Project!, I’ve Got My Eye on These Books, In Word-Related News, Shipping Is the Best, and Bibliophile Sweater Tag).

Reviewses, precious

Miscellaneoused:

Made minibooks of “Red Boots” 😀

Was a pollworker and ballot processor for the election

Learned basic paper quilling O.o.

Helped my sister with a Christmas party/charity event she put on

Participated in a HUGE indie Black Friday sale 😀

I also watched my school football team win their last game (cheered. my. head. off.), celebrated a younger sister’s birthday in a super fun way, and bought a couple really special books I’ve been looking forward to. Also, celebrating Thanksgiving with my family, playing with silly nephews, and buddy-reading with The Awesome Mikayla were huge highlights. 😉

This next month, I’m looking forward to possibly writing more 😉 , sharing some of the posts I brainstormed with Anna, and celebrating Advent and Christmas with my family. ❤

How was your November? What are you looking forward to this month?

(Also, it’s the end of the year when I start thinking about ways to change/improve my blog. Should I continue to do Plate Updates? Do you have a suggestion of how they could be different or better?)

The Generation Rising Team Rides Again

Last weekend, I sold books at our local homeschool convention with my amazing Generation Rising team members. Here’s a quick recap and picture fest!

While some of us set out decorations, arranged books, and fiddled with the tablecloth, Paul and Tanner rigged up our banner. It was my special job to cut tape for them. XD #skills

Our super cool Maggie pinned another banner (with an awesome quote!) to our tablecloth. Anna was working with her, but she paused to take this picture. 😉

The booth was all set up in a matter of hours (except for an additional bookshelf we brought the next day), and we paused to take a group picture before going home for the night. 😉

The next morning, Malachi and I counted the stock… I love the little details Anna put into the display. 😉

Several of the authors donated books to the giveaway bundle. Doesn’t it look amazing?!! ❤ ❤

Then we were ready to open for business! We got to have some really interesting conversations with other vendors, customers, and each other, had an accidental Les Mis sing-along, and ate way too many snacks. (Tanner did an amazing job finding stuff everyone could eat despite our various food allergies!) Oh, and we did sell books. 😉 We beat our record for the first day last year. Woohoo!

Some teammates and I goofing off during a slow hour… 😉

And just for fun, here’s a picture of Anna and I geeking when day one was finished. XD

It flew by so fast! Okay, here’s a nicer one…

Saturday morning dawned bright and EARLY. 😉 In just a matter of minutes, we had our booth in order and ready to go.

We didn’t get a ton of pictures of this day since we were so busy. 😉 One of my favorite things, though, was how we were able to encourage young writers and new homeschoolers with what we were doing. It was also really fun to help parents keep up with their voracious young readers. 😉

When it was time to close down, another independent author stopped by and asked if we wanted to trade books. Several of us said yes, and we all sat around signing them for each other. 😉 I’m looking forward to reading Sacrifice by Rachel Hintze.

Once again, Tanner sold out of stock! Malachi beat us all for most sold of one title with his new release and debut novel Through All Things, and Julia’s non-fiction book was a hit. 😉 We had a few repeat customers, and some brand new ones which was exciting! Altogether, a great year! 😉

This booth would not have been possible without God laying the stories on our hearts and bringing them and us together. Our amazing, supportive parents and Perry Elisabeth (who provided us Willises with transportation and had a super cool booth of her own with Rebekah Jones) also played a key role in making this happen. 😉 What a blessing!

Next year with new books! 😉

Pictures taken by Anna ❤ and Mrs. R.

 

Convention Prep Time!

Hey, y’all! Big doings coming up this weekend! 😀 The Generation Rising team and I are preparing to have another booth at the AFHE homeschool convention. Last year was a ton of fun, so we’re very excited to do it again! (We might get better pictures this time too…) 😉

Anna has been working on the website, logistics of what to bring, and the newsletter. (She’s also pulled off some really snazzy graphics for our new releases.) She’s good at stuff like that.

Malachi Cyr’s stock of his new novel Through All Things (a historical fiction) came–in double the amount expected! Check out his blog tour as well for a super cool giveaway. 😉

Tanner Froreich shared pictures of the Grand Canyon, himself riding a dinosaur, and his excitement over the convention. He’ll be bringing his Christian superhero novel The Blue Blur: A Mission Given again this year.

Maggie Joy posted about the convention and shared the world’s most adorable, amazing picture of her stock of The Star Under the City, a World War II novel. ❤

Paul Willis is our website guy, business card and banner guy, and a college student, but he still managed to crank out a second edition of his dystopian novel Crossroads. He’s been too busy to blog, but you should check out his site anyway. 😉 

Julia Hubler is joining us for the first time with her non-fiction book The Holistic Homestead. We’re excited to have her join us!

We also have three other authors who are unable to make it this year, but you can find out more about them on our website. 😉

I’ve been doing some getting ready myself. 😉 Attending group meetings, ordering and receiving stock, and helping mock up the table.

A Generation Rising meeting. That’s about as normal as it gets…

A HUGE box

Ooo, look what’s inside!

30 copies of my new novel!! It was amazing and slightly overwhelming to see so many of my books in one place. It’s the longest book I’ve ever written and the most stock I’ve ever bought at one time. 😉

All my book boxes ready to go! 😉

Our Generation Rising booth will be very fun, and it’s super exciting, but there’s another booth I can’t wait to see as well.

My sister Perry Elisabeth and another local author, Rebekah Jones, are running a booth called Ink and Endsheets. They’re gonna sell their books and short stories, as well as books by a couple other authors, AND tools for writers. It’s gonna be so. amazingly. fantastically. cool. 😀

A couple sisters and I got to go over to her house yesterday and help assemble little books and WriteMind planners. (We also talked about the Thunderbirds and listened to some pretty cool music. <3)

These basic planners are just waiting for customers to pick a cover and take them home. 😉 They’re so customizable, I like to think of them like Subway sandwiches. 😛

Short stories. ❤ ❤

The convention is just a couple days away! We’d love your prayers for safety and success.

It’s gonna be amazing. 😀

Kiera Release Day!!!

Today is the day. The Day.

Three years (+ a couple months) ago, I started a story. A story about a girl, a draft, a pastor, and some really fascinating side characters.

That story grew by sideplots, wordcount, a through-line, and a message.

There were snacks…

Some sophisticated planning… XD

Two sessions of Camp NaNoWriMo with the Chatterbox Girls…

Lots of writing and editing and more writing and editing…

Prayers for strength and time management and a clear message…

Some social media complaining and crowing, of course…

Working with the world’s best beta-readers…

A cover reveal, synopsis, and formatting…

Uploading…

A proof copy…! ❤

This blog tour! (Y’all have been so fun!)

Late night proofreading…

Re-uploading…

And now–TODAY!

Today this book is no longer mine. It belongs to you and all of the other readers who will open its pages. I know the message I wrote inside. I know the characters I created and the words I crafted. Those will all be different things to different readers, and it will be amazing.

Please welcome, Kiera to being a book! *claps* *eats imaginary chocolate*

Thank you so much to everyone who has helped me through this journey, and everyone who is still celebrating its release with me! I could not have done this without you. ❤ And my Savior, Who is writing my life story and lays these fictional ones on my heart, thank You.

 

Today’s Amazing Bloggers

Kaitlyn, sharing her thoughts about Kiera in a review. ❤

Mikayla, interviewing her favorite character Jade. (This wins points for most adorable post of the tour!)

Sara and her team, interviewing me in their super cool e-magazine. (I rambled a lot on that last question… It was really fun. 😉 )

Boring Buy Links

Amazon Kindle (the price doubles on Monday)

Paperback!!

 

And don’t forget the giveaway! This is the last day to enter. 😉

ENTER HERE

I’m soooo excited that this book is done!!! It’s really real. 😀 Thanks for celebrating with me! 😉

Kiera Blog Tour: The Characters Recommend…

Hello, everyone! Today is not Friday. It is Thursday. (That was just as reminder for myself, because I’ve been having trouble remembering what day it is. 😛 )

Do you know what this means?

1. Today is the 21st of June, the first day of summer! Happy Summer! Have a popsicle!!
2. This is the fourth day of blog tour, wow! 😀
3. Tomorrow is the 22nd of June, release day for Kiera! One more dawn, one more day, one day mooooorrrreee!

Today, my characters decided they want to recommend books to you which is pretty cool actually.

Kiera’s Top Three Books

The Little Prince by Antoine De Saint-Exupery is an enduring classic–sweet, thought-provoking and beautifully illustrated. Exactly Kiera’s type of book.  (Read my review here.)

Destiny and Kiera passed this series back and forth so much as teenagers that their copies are probably in tatters. 😉 It’s time to buy new copies online so Kiera can share them with Jade someday… Read my review of Princess Academy here.

This is an unexpected new favorite for Kiera. Loaned to her by a good friend, she wasn’t expecting to enjoy this dark fairytale so much. It was the strong, beautiful allegory that did it for her (and me too). Read my review here.

Destiny’s Top Two Books (And One Movie)

This novella is super cute and just short enough to read while waiting for a cow to give birth. It’s really darling. ❤ Read my review of Three Little Words here.

Destiny is brilliant at solving mysteries, so reading them is one of her extra-happy-favorite-things. No matter how many more amazing detective novels are published every year, she’ll still return to Mr. Holmes as her absolute favorite. (I’m curious, do you think she’s more of a Holmes or a Watson? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.) Don’t ask which book/story is her favorite because they all are. Except for those two really creepy ones…

Admittedly, farm life is a bit busy for reading, so movies and TV shows are the next best thing. This movie is kinda cheesy and old, but it’s darling and lovable and cheerful and everything. ❤ There are a couple content problems with it of course, but Destiny knows exactly what to skip and where to mute. 😉

Jade’s Top Three Books

This book has quite a few objects to count, name, and love plus KITTENS! Definitely a Jade favorite. 😉

It’s silly, rhymes, and there is also a cat in this one… See a theme here? XD

It’s also her other favorite book, because when a kid likes a book, you get to read it until you have it memorized. 😛

Brennan’s Top Three Books

This is likely Brennan’s all-time favorite book. When he first grabbed it off his family’s shelf, he thought he was reading a cheesy fantasy romance so he could make fun of it. And then it blew him away and was actually important to his spiritual walk. He re-reads the rest of the series every once in a while. (This is actually the only one of these books I’ve read, but I’d like to try some of the others sometime.)

This little book chronicles the life of a man who gave everything he had–and it wasn’t much because of ill-health and things–to God, and God used him in a big way. Inspiring to Brennan. 😉

This is one of those weird old classics they make you read in school and some people end up liking. Brennan is one of those people. 😉 Ironically, he read a version censored for language, but that didn’t affect the story any. It’s was still intriguing, thought-provoking, and weird.

 

So, there you are! These are the books that would be my characters’ favorites. 😉 I’ve read all of these (and the picture books at least five times each). Have you read any of them? What did you think?

 

Today’s amazing blogger is…

Faith, sharing a guest post I wrote about the method I used to finally write a full-length novel. 

Have you entered the giveaway? Here’s a quick reminder of what it entails…

(All the heart eyes. ❤ ❤ Check out the alternate international prize here! )

Enter Here

(There are entries everywhere from reading a book to doing a happy dance to following me to telling people. I tried to include something for everyone. 😉 )

Have fun! See you tomorrow, a.k.a. Real Friday, a.k.a. release day! 😉

Kiera Blog Tour: The Sparrow Song + Others

Welcome to day three of the blog tour! It’s been so much fun celebrating with you all. 😉

Today I want to share with you some of the songs that have encouraged or inspired me during the making of this book. 😉

 

 

 

Kiera’s “sparrow song” is real, and it’s been so important in my life! I love it to pieces. ❤ Cheerful, yet deep and meaningful. This is the original version by Jason Gray, and even if others cover it in the future (which I hinted at in the book 😉 ), this will always be my favorite version. ❤ This is the song that plays in Kiera’s kitchen when she is most joyful, plays in her head when the tears threaten to swallow her, and plays on full blast in the car while she’s on a roadtrip. 😉 Just a note, it is a bit on the rocky side. 😉

 

 

The artist wrote this song during a time of grief, so the words and the soft, contemplative sound seemed to fit perfectly with my story and one of its messages. No matter how terrible and confusing life can be, God keeps His promises and holds us in the palms of His hands.

 

 

 

 

 

The moment I heard this song (somewhere in the middle of rewriting Kiera), I knew it went with my book. It kinda sums up the Kiera’s story, but it also sums up everyone’s, I think. Lovely song about pain and renewal in Christ. 😉 (Also a little rocky.)

 

 

 

I absolutely CANNOT listen to music with lyrics while writing/editing. XD It’s my Achilles’ heel. Even the PianoGuys songs with cello in them just make me want to dance like crazy and sing along. 😉 Which is very bad for concentration… 😉 Taylor Davis’s music was a lifesaver during long editing sessions, and I think there was even one day where I listened to her entire channel. 😉 😛 This song is one of my absolute favorites of hers. ❤ It’s so smooth and sweet. I also love her covers of A Millions Dreams and Now We Are Free.

Honorable mentions also go to anything by Andrew Peterson, a few Lindsey Stirling compilations, some of Scott Mulvahill’s songs, and the PianoGuys (though y’all make me dance… *shakes head*).

Do you like to listen to music while you’re writing or reading? What are some of your favorite songs?

(Don’t forget to enter the giveaway!)

Today’s brilliant bloggers are…

Medomfo with an interview of me! I especially enjoyed her questions about what I want readers to gain from my book and tips for young authors. 😉

Lydia is also interviewing me and reviewing the novel. ❤

Kiera Blog Tour: Writing the Future

My book Kiera is hard to categorize. Its setting falls somewhere between contemporary and dystopian, and so far, there’s not a genre for that. 😉

I chose to set it one generation in the future with more political and cultural persecution of Christians than happens in the United States right now. This presented some unique challenges because I’m not a time traveler so I have zero way of knowing what the future will be like. 😉

If you’ve read sci-fi or dystopian books written more than 20 years ago, you know that we were predicted to have brain implants and hoverboards by now. (Ha, ha! XD) In some ways, we have advanced technologically more than people predicted, and in some other ways (like those hoverboards), we haven’t.

I decided to make my story’s future setting feel very much like right now with a few important changes, but no out-of-this-world technology. 😉 I also stayed away from brand names, most euphemisms, and real-life locations. I tried my best to follow to its logical and technological conclusion what I already see happening.

Did I make mistakes? Oh, probably. I definitely forgot to include hoverboards, but hopefully the next generation will have them (because that would just be really, really cool). 😉 Is that okay? Definitely, it’s fiction after all, and I hope the message of my story is more important than its technology. 😉

Today’s amazing bloggers are…

Angela Watts, spotlighting Kiera and sharing the first chapter. ❤

Esther with a book review–woohoo! (Hey, that rhymes.) 😉

And Anna is sharing some super cute fanart and character aesthetic boards… 😀

 

Don’t forget to enter the giveaway! Some options are repeatable every day. 😉

The giveaway includes…

• A signed, paperback copy of Kiera
• A journal that says “Everyday is an adventure”
• A magnet that says “Love never fails” ❤
• A bag of super yummy and healthy soft peppermints
• A bird’s nest ❤ ❤
• and a really cool treasure box to keep it all in 😉

An international winner (outside the contiguous United States) will instead receive…

• A $15 Amazon giftcard
• An ebook copy of Crossroads by Paul Willis
• and an ebook copy of Kiera 😉

Someone asked on yesterday’s post if the fact that they are already subscribed to Once Upon an Ordinary, my mailing list, etc. could count as entries. The answer is absolutely yes! (Also, don’t forget to happy dance, because that counts too.)

Enter Here

Thanks for celebrating with me! Have a supertastic day!

Kiera Blog Tour: Introductions First

Hello, all! Cool thing today. 😉

Introduction to the blog tour

This is a blog tour to celebrate and introduce my novel Kiera. It’s releasing this Friday the 22nd, and I’m so excited! I can’t wait to share it with you! Every day of the blog tour, I’ll be linking out to the lovely hosts and hostesses who have offered to let me “visit” their blogs. 😉

Introduction to me, the author

I’m Kate, and since you’ll see my official bio around a lot this tour, I’m gonna go ahead and just tell you three random things about myself.

1. Middle-grade fiction is probably the genre of books I read the most.
2. I once wrote a movie script. It was a ton of fun, but eleven-year-old me had too much fun with the melodrama of things. XD
3. I like to sit on the floor while I write in a spot between the couch and a huge decorative birdcage. We’ve taken to calling it “Kate’s Kingdom”. 😉

Introduction to the book in question

“Kiera is looking forward to her eighteenth birthday. The official end of school, a party with her best friend, and chocolate cake. A sudden military draft, no possible exemptions, had never crossed her mind. 

Kiera is terrified! Getting drafted would mean leaving her family, her little friend Jade—life as she knows it. 

A surprising offer from Brennan Stewart just might be the answer to her prayers, but an even worse trial leaves her with one question…

If God truly loves her, why did this tragedy happen?” (from Goodreads)

Kiera (pronounced Keer-uh) is a Christian dystopian novel with strong themes of trusting God, true love, being pro-life, and standing up for what you believe. There’s also a little bit of romance. 😉

Introduction to the giveaway

That’s right! There is one. 😀

Sooo much pretty! ❤

The giveaway is open to US and international entries alike, but due to the cost of shipping, there will be an alternate international prize. If the winner who is drawn lives outside the contiguous United States, a $15 Amazon giftcard, an ebook copy of Kiera, and an ebook copy of Crossroads will be their lovely prize. 😉

ENTER HERE

And last, but not least an…

Introduction to today’s amazing bloggers

Kellyn Roth is interviewing a side character, Destiny, with enthusiasm and some great questions! ❤

Paul Willis (my bro) is sharing a post written by the both of us about how his book Crossroads and my book Kiera slightly connect… 😉

 

And there you are! Let’s get celebrating!! 😀

Booksthetic Photo Contest!

You know those pretty pictures you see online of people’s books posed with flowers or ice cream or Christmas lights? Those pretty “book aesthetic” pictures? I challenge you to take some of your own!

Starting today, June 15th and running all the way to Saturday, June 23rd at midnight PST, I’m hosting a “booksthetic” photo contest! 😀

 

Contest Rules

Entries open to people 13 and older.

No people, pets, or cyborgs allowed in pictures.

Explicit book covers will be disqualified.

One entry per category per person allowed.

Pictures must be original to you.

Categories

Category one: Color

All the pink books, lovely, lovely pink books! Or red books, blue books, white books… you get the idea. This category is for books arranged primarily according to color. (And you are totally welcome to include other design elements as well.)

Category two: Object

This is for a book styled with an object directly from it or playing off the cover. Get as creative as you like! 😀

Category three: Theme/Genre

Two or more books with the same genre or theme tying them together. It would be extra cool if you used objects or backgrounds to help convey their theme.

Category four: Background

This could be anything from your favorite fuzzy purple rug to the woods you got lost in on your vacation. The important thing about this picture is the location. 😉

 

Need inspiration? Check out my Pinterest board for book aesthetic pictures. (And if you click through to Pinterest itself, I have them organized by category.)

Eeeep! I seriously cannot wait to see what you all come up with!! ❤

Enter the contest here!! 

The winner of each category will recieve a $5 Amazon giftcard. Also, you’re gonna have so much fun doing this, so that’s a pretty great reward too. 😉

Have fun! See you next week for a blog tour of my novel “Kiera”!