Thursday, September 29, 2011

Final Day of the Release Gathering and Secret Guest Blogger Rebecca Germany, Sr Fiction Editor at Barbour Publishing!



Welcome to the Final Day of the release gathering for "A Quaker Christmas". We are SO happy to have our fiction editor for this collection, Rebecca Germany of Barbour Publishing, joining us for a guest blog about her inspiration behind "A Quaker Christmas." She has also offered to give away as a SPECIAL BONUS a copy of the NY Times Bestseller A Log Cabin Christmas. Comment on the post and leave your e-mail address to enter. This door prize ends September 30th at 10 PM est. Along with this, we will also be drawing separately for the Grand Prize of a gift card to the Colonial Williamsburg Gift Shoppe. Remember, you get another entry if you Facebook or Tweet this with others and "3" entries if you buy "A Quaker Christmas"!  E-mail proof of sharing and /or purchase to: blissful63(at)gmail(dot)com. 
View the book trailer.

Here's Becky -


Plain people of plain faith. What makes them so interesting to us?

With all the fiction out there right now about the Amish, it would almost seem to some like readers might be drawn in by the rules and orderliness of religion. But we know it goes deeper to a romantic notion we all have about escaping to a slower paced life where we can live out our faith away from the pressures of modern culture--though readers soon realize that is even a dream for the Amish.

The plain people of the 1800s didn’t stand out as drastically as the Amish and other Anabaptist do today. But still there were groups of faith-filled immigrants and like-minded Christians who clustered together, worked together, and dressed alike. The Quakers were one of those groups who we don’t read a lot about. Their attempts to live in peace often put them in sticky situations as they migrated into areas held by Native Americans or were themselves pressed by events like the Civil War.

I wanted to see some of these things explored through fiction, and I needed a Christmas collection. But one thing about the Quakers was that they have never made a big deal about religious holidays. In their non-assuming way, they will remember the significance of Christ’s birth, but don’t usually want to gain anything like gifts in return.

I called on authors to give me some story ideas that could incorporate both romance and an exploration of Quaker Christmas beliefs, and I think I landed on a very nice group of 4 authors. Though they worked apart, their stories blend well and celebrate the Quaker faith of days gone by.



Leave a comment and your e-mail for a chance to win A Log Cabin Christmas, and get bonus entries for the gift card if you Tweet or Facebook about this final day with Becky. If you purchase A Quaker Christmas, you get THREE bonus entries toward the gift card! Giveaways ends September 30th at 10 PM est.

Thanks so much for being part of our release gathering. We hope you had as much fun as we did!

22 comments:

Trish Perry said...

What a fascinating combination--the holiday we've built up too heavily in the gift-giving area and a group of people who celebrate Christ's birth in a simplified, fully reverent manner. Sounds like a wonderful collection, just as Log Cabin Christmas does.

Pencildancers said...

Beautiful photo of Becky. I recognize the background. :)
I have the book so don't enter me in the contest.
Diana
www.pencildancer.com

Cara Putman said...

How fun to hear how Becky came up with the idea. Off to tweet and facebook this link.

Christina Rich said...

It is interesting to know how this novella collection came together. I've often wondered about the ideas behind the stories. And I've been hearing from people a desire for more Quaker stories.

Rose McCauley said...

Thanks, Lauralee and Becky for allowing us to see how Becky comes up with unique ideas that show a more gentle, yet intriguing, slice of life. And I also recognize the fun setting of the Mississippi River as seen from the Riverboat Tom Sawyer. Fun memories! I did buy a copy of A Quaker Christmas at conference (Ramona even signed it for me!), but don't enter me in the drawing as I already read and enjoyed ALCC.

Mary Connealy said...

Becky it's a great idea to take a people who don't make a bit deal of Christmas and do a Christmas story about them. If they've really got the heart for a TRUE Christmas celebration, the possibilities for a faith story are rich and unique.

Lauralee Bliss said...

Just to let everyone know, even if you already have A Log Cabin Christmas, you can be entered for the gift card by your comment also. You get an extra entry for the gift card if you tweet and / or Facebook and THREE entries if you purchase A Quaker Christmas! Thanks!

Julie Arduini said...

I love how ideas for books come together. This sounds like a winner, and what a perfect read for a dreary day like it is here today. Blessings for each of you that many readers would pick up this book!

Patricia said...

Thanks Rebecca for initiating this novella concept. Having read that the Quakers believe in a spiritual equality for women, I am anxious to read more about the Quaker faith. I'd love to win a copy of the book. FYI, I stopped by due to a fb post by Cara (yep she followed through with her comment). pgrau (dot) ggi (at) gmail (dot) com

Beth Loughner said...

The cover alone would make readers want this book. Thanks for sharing, Becky.

Susan Hollaway said...

Sounds like a great collection. Log Cabin Christmas sounds great too!

shollaway2008(at)gmail(dot)com

Carla Gade said...

What a wonderful post! It was great to hear from Becky how this collection was put together. And I really hope that it inspires the readers to also celebrate a simpler Christmas, keeping Christ at the heart of it all. Many blessings to you all!

I facebooked, and tweeted this:
"Meet Barbour Publishing editor Rebecca Germany and enter a Christmas giveaway!!"

https://www.facebook.com/carla.gade

http://twitter.com/#!/carlagade


carlagade [at] gmail [dot] com

Carla Gade said...

Forgot to mention, I loved the trailer! Very intriguing and peaceful at the same time.

karenk said...

i am looking forward to reading this fabulous book...thanks for sharing :)

karenk
kmkuka at yahoo dot com

Mary Hake said...

Enjoy these collections. And I love Christmas.
tormhake @ netzero.com

Great Lakes Romances said...

Very interesting explanation of the collection idea. Thanks for sharing!
Donna Winters
bigwaterpub [at] gmail [dot] com

Debby Lee said...

Hi Lauralee and Becky, thanks for sharing today. I love Barbour romance books. Can't wait to add A Log Cabin Christmas and A Quaker Christmas to my collection.

Robin Bayne said...

Thanks for sharing with us! (don't enter me in the drawing)

Rachael Phillips said...

Thank you, Becky, for letting us work with your special idea! I enjoyed writing Pirate of My Heart for A Quaker Christmas and working with Lauralee, Ramona and Claire to help make it happen.

Paula said...

Missed the deadline. Bummer. But am very interested in this collection!

Erica Vetsch said...

Congratulations on the collection release!

I hadn't thought about the challenge of the Quaker approach to holidays. I'll be looking for these stories at my local bookstore.

Carrie Fancett Pagels said...

Looking forward to read this. Thanks for this post! Thank you Becky for all you do to get these great books out there.