Sarah Price's Blog, page 32

I had a light bulb moment just now.

I was doing my devotions which I do with a small online group when

BAM! IT hit me!

Maybe you have already considered this. AND, it’s not something I haven’t heard before. But, today as I read it, God was like, “THIS is your family. This. There is hope. Your past (The people in your family’s past) is NOT your future. You are not them Your life is not their life. Their life choices do not dictate yours (who you are or who you are going to be).

Here’s part of the story of Judah (if you want to read the whole thing, read Genesis Chapter 38)

Genesis 38:12-19 and Genesis 38:24-30

12 In the course of time the wife of Judah, Shua’s daughter, died. When Judah was comforted, he went up to Timnah to his sheepshearers, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. 13 And when Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep,” 14 she took off her widow’s garments and covered herself with a veil, wrapping herself up, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that Shelah was grown up, and she had not been given to him in marriage. 15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 16 He turned to her at the roadside and said, “Come, let me come in to you,” for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?” 17 He answered, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” And she said, “If you give me a pledge, until you send it—” 18 He said, “What pledge shall I give you?” She replied, “Your signet and your cord and your staff that is in your hand.” So he gave them to her and went in to her, and she conceived by him. 19 Then she arose and went away, and taking off her veil she put on the garments of her widowhood.

24 About three months later Judah was told, “Tamar your daughter-in-law has been immoral.[ c ] Moreover, she is pregnant by immorality.”[ d ] And Judah said, “Bring her out, and let her be burned.” (See–he was judging HER for something HE had done himself.) 25 As she was being brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, “By the man to whom these belong, I am pregnant.” And she said, “Please identify whose these are, the signet and the cord and the staff.” 26 Then Judah identified them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not know her again.

27 When the time of her labor came, there were twins in her womb. 28 And when she was in labor, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.” 29 But as he drew back his hand, behold, his brother came out. And she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself!” Therefore his name was called Perez.[ e ] 30 Afterward his brother came out with the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called Zerah.

Now let’s read Matthew 1:3

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ  

“and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron”

Judah slept with a prostitute. Yet, when he found out that his daughter-in-law had been immoral, he was going to have her killed. She did the same thing he had done. Yet, he was judging her and had no shame in what he had done. (I do realize it was a different day and women were not treated the same). She gave birth to two babies from Judah…one of which, Perez, was an ancestor of Jesus. Jesus had all SORTS of sinful people in his heritage. But…God chose THEM to be the flesh to which Jesus was born.

WE have been adopted by God our Father. We are children of the King. Sometimes we have Godly role models who turn out to be someone FAR from who we thought they were. They may be a family member, a pastor, a teacher…It might be someone we kind of “set up” as our Biblical Giant or Spiritual Guide. And, when they fell or when they proved how very human they were, we became devastated or disillusioned. But, that does not mean that WE are any less. Because the human who we regarded as godly and moral fell doesn’t mean that who WE are in Christ has changed. It doesn’t mean that the lives we have touched weren’t touched. It doesn’t mean we are less of a pastor, minister, missionary, son, daughter, father, mother. We are God’s Children. God, who created all things and makes all things new. Who we are in Christ is found in the reflection of Jesus in us, not a person’s impression on us.

It’s always about Jesus, never about humans. Humans always fail. Jesus never ever fails.

If Jesus, who was perfect, could come from adulterers and murderers and have the most amazing and incredible ministry of anyone ever on this planet…don’t you think God has amazing things planned for us too?

I do!

Jeremiah 29:11 I know what I am doing. (HE REALLY DOES< DO YOU TRUST HIM?) I have it all planned out (HE HAS A PLAN!) plans to TAKE CARE OF YOU, not abandon you (HE WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU), plans to give you the future you hope for.

Lisa Bull sees her life as a journey along God’s divine plan. While considering herself an expert on nothing, she enjoys laughing and has made “choosing joy” her motto. Lisa has experienced God’s unfailing love and grace in her life and wants nothing more than for others to enjoy that same gift in their lives.

Lisa is the daughter and granddaughter of ministers. She has multiple relatives in ministry on both sides of her father’s family including several pastors, pastor’s wives, and missionaries. In fact, ministry in her maternal grandmother’s family can be traced back several generations. She loves being a wife and mother of two terrific young men.

Visit Lisa at mommalisaof2-LISA’S PERCEPTIONS

I have fun news…the ebook of Second Chances is available! Print copies are set to be released on June 2nd but if you want to read about Anna and Freman early, here is your chance. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, writing this book and I cannot wait for everyone to meet this wonderful cast of characters. I know you will love them as much as I did.

I am visiting with Novel Crossing today. Rel Mollet of relzreviewz.com asked me some fantastic questions. Stop by and enter to win a copy of An Empty Cup!

The Amish life isn’t all bonnets and buggies. In Sarah Price’s latest novel, An Empty Cup, Rosanna Troyer is a woman struggling with depression and the trauma of her past. Sarah shares intimately about her own battle with cancer, her love of story and the Amish faith…..CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING

Ah, spring is here and with it, a new deadline hovers before me: my retelling of Jane Austen’s book, Sense and Sensibility.

So far, this has been my favorite book to retell, mostly because there are such rich characters and complicated relationships!

When I study a novel, it takes a long time to dissect and examine each aspect of the story. There are so many layers to Jane Austen’s novels! Simply reading them as a “story” is not enough. True Janeites know this only too well.

For many years, I have been watching the evolution of the Amish genre. In the beginning, when I first submitted Fields of Corn in 1989, the publisher told me that no one would ever want to read a romance book about the Amish. Yet, eight years later, the first romance novels were published by another author and the popularity of the topic, when presented well, exploded.

I have been writing about the Amish for almost thirty years. Over the last five years, my books witnessed the growth in readership as readers discovered Fields of Corn, my first novel. Since then, I have written and published, both as an Indie and a traditional publisher, thirty-five novels, most of which were #1 in Religious Romance as well as Top 100 Amazon Bestsellers.

I present this background before I attempt to conquer the real topic of this blog: the exploitation of the Amish by authors for the purpose of sales, not stories.

More and more authors are jumping into the increasingly shark infested waters of the Amish genre, writers who know nothing about the religion or culture but merely want to put a photo of a badly Photoshopped Amish woman on the cover or simply use the word Amish in the title to attract the attention of the reader.

Open the books and they tend to be poorly written with no content that references the true Amish culture or religion. There is little respect for the very people that the readers long to know through these books.

Most recently, I read a pre-release of a book for an author about the Amish. Previously, I enjoyed this author’s one book that was recommended to me when my Hills of Wheat novel caught some flak for have a questionable pre-martial scene—minus details and they did get married. I reached out to the author to tell her how much I truly enjoyed this historical novel.

The response?

Crickets chirped.

Now, I was asked to write a review on the new book. I left my review vague as I’m not one to bash another author’s work. However, I did comment that the entire story could have taken place anywhere, not just in an Amish community. I failed to mention that the book also seemed to take on a Fifty Shades of Amish with very graphic scenes (including the relief of a man with a sponge in a bath tub) that I, personally, find disrespectful to the Amish and the readers.

It’s just offensive.

Further scrutiny of the characters and their interactions showed more discrepancies: Amish holding hands in front of congregations, Amish husbands greeting their wives with a kiss, pet nicknames, men working bare chested in the fields, and so on. These things simply do not happen. Never mind the confession before the congregation that required children to leave midway. Anyone who knows the Amish would know that the children would never be there to begin with. Those parts of the service are kept “members only” and children are removed prior to the confessions or announcements.

Overall, I was simply disappointed. I felt that the Amish were exploited. Perhaps without the Amish in the book, I would have enjoyed it better. Their exploitation was insulting to me as a writer and a reader of Amish Christian fiction. It continues to make the genre look cheap and contributes to its bad reputation from a literary perspective.

I work hard for my books to be taken seriously…not just because they are Amish Christian, but in spite of that very fact. These types of books just knock the rest of us down a few pegs. But that’s OK. It won’t be the first time I had to get up, brush off the dust from another author who cares more for the sale than the subject, and survived. I imagine you, dear reader, will, too.

When I received The Rescued, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Although Marta Perry’s first in the Keepers of the Promise series (The Forgiven) had been good, I found it difficult to follow. Would the same be true of The Rescued? From where I’m sitting? No. The storylines were much better and The Rescued was a solid read.

As with Book One, The Rescued has two storylines. The first storyline is of Judith Wegler, in current day, who is constantly playing the Peacemaker between her husband and his teenage brother (who she has practically raised from birth, due to a tragic fire that killed the rest of their family.) Judith is at the breaking point and finds herself doubting not only her peacemaking efforts, but her marriage.

The second storyline tells about a 1950s Amish widow named Mattie Lapp. Mattie is struggling at a very pivotal point in Amish history: how long the Amish must attend Englisch schools. One of Mattie’s children is caught in the crosshairs of the debate, but at least she has her late husband’s cousin to lean on for support…and perhaps more.

I was given The Rescued in exchange for my honest review. Although other characters are mentioned from Book One, I do not think it is too distracting. The Rescued can easily be read as a stand-alone. I enjoyed both storylines (especially the one that took place in the 1950s. That particular storyline really seemed to capture the mood and heightened emotions and frenzy that must have been present then.) As was the case with Book One, I felt like The Rescued could have just as well been published as two, separate books. The very loose ties between the two storylines were weak and contrived. That being said, I still enjoyed both stories very much and found The Rescued to be a good, solid read.

Susan Ferrell and her husband make their home in the Atlanta Metro area. Although Susan struggles with chronic migraine headaches, she stays very busy as a stay-at-home mom to one very precocious little girl. While catching her breath, she feeds her Amishaholic tendencies by reading vast amounts of Amish literature! Susan is a book reviewer for Destination Amish

Any moms out there?

I just want to take a second to speak to you. Sometimes life is overwhelming. And, there are times when you are already at full capacity and one more thing is added to your “now I have to deal with this too?” list. You wonder how you are going to find the energy to deal with this new revelation about your child, your spouse, your family (whatever it may be).

Been there?

I have. Unfortunately, more than once!

You know what? God was not surprised! He wasn’t! So. As I step into the puddle of overflowing ick (again), I’m looking to my Father and saying, “Will You hold my hand through this? I need Your help. I’m not sure what to say or what to do. But, I know You will help me every step of the way.”

Be encouraged.

Isaiah 41:13 (VOICE)

After all, it is I, the Eternal One your God, who has hold of your right hand, Who whispers in your ear, “Don’t be afraid. I will help you.”

Lisa Bull sees her life as a journey along God’s divine plan. While considering herself an expert on nothing, she enjoys laughing and has made “choosing joy” her motto. Lisa has experienced God’s unfailing love and grace in her life and wants nothing more than for others to enjoy that same gift in their lives.

Lisa is the daughter and granddaughter of ministers. She has multiple relatives in ministry on both sides of her father’s family including several pastors, pastor’s wives, and missionaries. In fact, ministry in her maternal grandmother’s family can be traced back several generations. She loves being a wife and mother of two terrific young men.

Visit Lisa at mommalisaof2-LISA’S PERCEPTIONS

Hi Teri! Thank you for joining us. Why don’t you start off by introducing yourself?

Hi Sarah! My pleasure! Thanks so much for having me! What a treat! Teri Clark Linden here, coming to you from Yellow Springs, Ohio!

Before we dive into the serious stuff, I noticed you ride horses and love animals! How many pets and what are their names? Photos?

Yes! I do love animals and ride horses, and though I don’t have any pet horses I feel at times as though my female German Shepherd, Gerty, could certainly be counted as one for all her trotting around in my home! She is kept company by 2 cats named Sophie and Mrs. Peepers and 1 Beta Fish, Fred. Including myself, husband and son I lovingly keep 7 beings alive and well!

How did you start doing voice-overs and audio books?

I began performing radio commercial voice-overs through my talent agents in Chicago, which developed into corporate training industrial video narration and promotional voice-over, mostly in Detroit. I was volunteer narrating for Assistive Media, an Ann Arbor, MI based website for the blind and was asked by company founder if I would record an audiobook. I narrated about three or four for Assistive Media and inevitably ended up narrating several for Brilliance Audio, and then Audible.

OK, next question….What is the funniest part about providing the voice for a book? What is the hardest part?

What a great question! Actually, after giving this some thought I think the funniest part about providing my voice for a book is actually the hardest as well! Let me explain: I narrated a book once where the setting was Scotland and during one scene I voiced a conversation between 5 or so Scottish Senior Citizen men! So it’s quite funny to think of a mid-40’s American woman providing the voice of a bunch of old Scotsmen, but there you have it. It’s also the most difficult, not just for the obvious gender and accent voice work, but in that it has to be done subtly and not taking away from the story, or else the scene becomes cartoon animation instead of supporting the author’s story along.

I know that my moods definitely impact what I’m writing. I imagine the same holds true for recording the audio. How do you deal with that?

I can’t really think of where my moods got in the way of my narrating, other than to put in in the perspective of something happening in life that I need to table because I need to be present at work and get the job done, which is really no different than situations I’ve faced at previous jobs…I’m specifically thinking about when my granddad passed away and I drove back to MI from OH to trade mutual funds on clients accounts on Monday and then drove back to OH for the funeral Tuesday. Mostly, it’s my general health – my throat in particular that needs to stay healthy otherwise as you can imagine it affects my vocal performance and energy narrating.

Oooooo, what happens if you don’t like a particular character? For example, several of my readers have already contacted me how they were so angry with Rosanna’s husband in An Empty Cup. They felt such negative vibes coming from him. Does that impact your recording? How do you remain impartial to a character that irritates or annoys you?

I can’t recall not liking a particular character, but can recall feeling awkward in sessions with male engineers and directors while narrating heavy romance scenes in some of the romantic genre fiction I’ve narrated, like Nora Roberts and Debbie Macomber. I’ve just had to remember to be completely professional and just say the words – though it’s hard not to laugh and lose it when after stumbling on a sentence the engineer pipes in from the booth into my headphones telling me to, “…pick it up from, ‘touched her’…” or something like that!

A lot of my readers are always asking for more audio books. I noticed you have your own Whisper Home Recording Studio. I imagine you have also seen an increase in demand for recordings. What would you say to someone who has never tried an audio book?

That’s really great that your readers are enthusiastic for more audio books. I have seen an increase in demand for audio books, especially over the past 3 years. I know one of my regular audio book publishing clients just upped their recording studios from 4 to 10 over the past couple of years. When I was first hired by Audible it was to fulfill their need to outsource a lot of material and I think I narrated a little over 50 books for them in around 40 weeks, which was the impetus for me getting my home studio.

You can speak in a lot of dialects/accents! How do you learn to pick them up?

I have always had a musical ear so to speak for dialects and accents and mimicking and learning them has come easily. I first had formal training at University – just basics like Standard British, Cockney, Irish and Southern – and covering some key vowel and consonant sounds and changes from North American, and have continued studying with who I call my Voice-Over Talent/Teacher guru in LA, Pat Fraley. What’s really great about new media is there is a plethora of information available on websites and apps to get authentic accents – for instance, I made friends with a recording studio owner in Dublin when I was just in Ireland last week and he has a local talent casting website full of Irish Talent’s demos, many of whose descriptions include the counties in Ireland they are from (see, there is no such thing as “Standard” British or Irish as the dialect – just like in the States – changes every 10 miles or so it seems!) I’m always learning! The challenge in audio books is not to “die trying” and end up sounding like Pepe Le Pew vs. offering a flavor of a dialect to enhance the scene!

OK, last question…ready? Favorite part of recording An Empty Cup?

I have to say my favorite part in narrating An Empty Cup was being immersed in the PA Dutch Amish world – twice as I read every book twice I narrate; first for research and second when narrating! Also, it’s always the best when I do some work I can share in the car or at home with my 9 1/2 year-old son!

Thank you so much for popping over to my blog, Teri. I hope you’ll visit again and tell us about some of your other exciting projects.

Thank you so much, Sarah! Please call on me again any time and good luck with the release party for An Empty Cup!

Who would like to win an audio book of An Empty Cup? One lucky reader will! To enter leave a comment for Terri. It’s that easy! Giveaway starts today,Wednesday, April 15th and ends on Wednesday, April 22nd. Good Luck!!

Teri Clark Linden is an American Actress, Audiobook Narrator, Wife, Mom & Human (not necessarily in order!) She has been directed by J. J. Abrams in the film SUPER 8 and acted in the Tom Cruise film JACK REACHER. Teri has narrated over 80 audio books, most of which can be found on Amazon or Audible.  She lives in Yellow Springs, Ohio with 1 husband, 1 son, 1 dog, 2 cats and a fish named Fred the Red. More about Teri can be found on her website at www.tericlarklinden.com, social media Instagram tclarkvomama, Twitter @tericlarkvo, @myidiotmom (#myidiotmom) & Facebook Teri Clark Linden.

Happy Release Day! An Empty Cup is ready to be downloaded and read!

And I’m anxious to start seeing your reviews pop up on Amazon and BN.com. Your greatest compliment is telling your friends about the book, if you like it!

What readers are saying:

“This book is quite easily my favorite by Sarah Price. I have read several of her books and enjoyed them all but this one grabbed me at the first page and didn’t let go until the last word had been read. This book could very well be used as a textbook on how to write great Amish fiction…”-Two Girls and a Book

“Sarah does an excellent job of bringing her readers into Rosanna’s thoughts and feelings so that we can truly share in her experiences. Journeying with Rosanna through her ups and downs is a captivating experience which also offers a challenge to take a step back and do some self-reflection about your own day-to-day choices.”- Southern Gal Loves to Read

“I could go on and on and say why this book is so wunderbar (wonderful) but I won’t. I will just say two things: “One Empty Cup” cannot fill another, and “Givers need to receive too.” You need to read this book and follow the life giving messages clearly written within the pages of this story.”- Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations 

*Don’t forget our Facebook Party is tonight at seven. Hope to see you there!*