Love Note From the Lake: December ’21
Winter has certainly started out with a bang!
As you know, this November, a series of catastrophic atmospheric rivers hit BC. We live minutes from a lake, surrounded by mountain streams and for two weeks, we watched as the one road in and out of our area was flooded, hit by rock- and mudslides, washed out and repaired, repeatedly. We are very lucky that no homes were damaged here.
In our old neighbourhood it’s a different story. On the right, you’ll see an aerial photo of TransCanada Highway #1 and the Whatcom Road exit in Abbotsford, BC. Heading west is Vancouver; heading east is the rest of the country.
Our animal hospital is located inside the red circle at the top right of the photo. The area was evacuated so we were unable to get inside for about a week, but again, we were lucky to have no damage to the premises itself.
You can see the devastation all around us, though. Many, many commercial farms—dairy, vegetable, poultry, egg, beef—were all but destroyed. It’s heartbreaking.
When life is hard, readers, is when we need each other more than ever. The goodness, generosity and kindness we’ve witnessed all around us has been overwhelming. Many people also told me how, when the constant bad news was overwhelming, they turned to books.
There’s a special magic, an intimacy that occurs when two people, separated by time and space, are connected by a story. When one reader can hear the words of one author and be taken out of one place and brought to another and we are reminded that life can and will be wonderful again.
Have you read this Tule Christmas story? (I actually teared up while writing this one.)
This is a reunion story of two hearts torn apart by life.
Right now, many people are going through challenges the likes of which they’ve never faced before. Stories help us see who others have triumphed over the darkness.
This one brought me special Christmas joy; I hope it does the same for you.
Love Note: Jane Porter
One writer who is exceptionally good at bringing hope is New York Times bestselling author Jane Porter. I met Jane in 2013 at an author signing event. Our tables were nearby so we got to chatting. When she kindly showed interest in my series, I asked if she’d read an advance copy of my upcoming book, for a cover quote.
When you’re new in this business, endorsements by established authors are A Big Deal, and most authors, no matter how generous, simply don’t have time to read all the manuscripts they get offered.
Jane agreed—with a condition. “I’m launching a new project,” she said. “I want you to write me a story.”
She couldn’t divulge details yet but of course, I agreed. I mean, Jane Porter was going to give me a cover quote. OF COURSE I agreed!
That project was Tule Publishing. The story she endorsed became Wild Sky Healing, with my cheeky veterinarian heroine.
The story she requested became Her Montana Hero, the first in my beloved Montana Home series.
Jane invited me into what is now a thriving publishing house, with 178 authors and a catalog of more than 800 titles. Jane, who has a degree in screenwriting, has gone on to make film deals for many Tule books. From the beginning, Jane wanted to create an author-centric publishing house where writers could pen the stories they loved, get the support they needed AND earn an income from their work.
Last summer, while I was on a much-needed writing break, Jane asked if I wanted to try my hand at editing. That was the impetus for me to begin the Simon Fraser University Editing Program. In 2021 I did structural edits on six full-length manuscripts, and will complete my editing certificate in January, 2022. (It’s been a busy year and to be honest, I’m tired of studying!)
In an industry known for being cutthroat and heartless, Jane Porter and her brilliant combination of creativity, energy and business acumen has created something unique. Her gift for attracting talented, committed people means that the Tule team is the best I’ve ever worked with. And under it all is love. For stories. For readers. For this crazy industry. And for authors.
Thank you, Jane Porter, for everything. This Love Note’s for you.
News from Roxanne’s Writing World
Entangled Publishing has licensed two of my titles to KISS, a new app for digital reading. KISS is a new and exciting way to experience romance stories of all genres. Enjoy serialized quality content from NYT and USA Today bestselling authors, available right from your phone.
KISS has hundreds of titles and authors to choose from, including new and exclusive content from some of your favourite voices!
KISS uses a pay-as-you-go format, so you can read as much or as little as you like, using “coins.”
That’s it for me, my friend. Until the next Love Note from the Lake… stay well, be kind and happy reading. Merry Christmas!
Love Note From the Lake: July ’21
E-bikes!!
Last summer, we rented e-bikes on a trip to the Okanagan for a wine tour. Neither of us had ridden for years (decades, for me, probably) and with one or two iffy knees between us (mine, usually) we weren’t sure what to expect. Well. We LOVED it!
Of course, during COVID, because everyone was doing stay-cations, there were none to be had. Anywhere.
So this year, we vowed to pull the trigger on this and last week, we finally did.
This, people, is the way to ride bikes. Especially if you live in a hilly area, like BC and have, ahem, passed one (or more) milestone birthdays. 😁
We’re having so much fun with them. We’ve heard that falling off isn’t an “if” so much as a “when” and “how much damage” so I expect a few scrapes in our future… and I don’t care! It’s so much fun!
Summer Reading Sale!
My entire three-book Sunset Bay series is currently on sale. I don’t know how long it will last, so check out the links below quickly!
Book #1: Sunset Bay Sanctuary $0.99
The spectacular scenery and craggy beaches draw tourists to the small Oregon town of Sunset Bay. But Sanctuary Ranch offers a different kind of experience: a refuge for people—and animals—desperate for a new beginning . . .
Book #2: Driftwood Creek $0.99
Nestled among the forests and coves that dot the Oregon coast, Sanctuary Ranch is a home for strays–both human and animal–and the starting off point for second chances . . .
“… engrossing… an earthy, sensuous, slow-building romance between two scrappy, slow-to-trust misfits…Rich and atmospheric…Complex and intriguing.” – Publishers Weekly STARRED REVIEW
Book #3: Blackberry Cove $1.99
Amid the wildly beautiful beaches of Sunset Bay, Oregon, lies Sanctuary Ranch, a refuge for strays, both human and animal. A place where love and healing go hand-in-hand . . .
“Fans of small town series with character driven plots, such as those by Susan Wiggs and Debbie Macomber, will find that Sunset Bay hits the spot.”
—Booklist
Today’s Love Note
This month’s Love Note goes out to our neighbours. If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you’ve seen the excitement that occurred here this week, when a Ford F150 missed the curve in the
road and crashed through our fence.
No injuries, amazingly. The driver lost control when he blacked out behind the wheel, but walked away unharmed. I happened to be around the corner getting the mail, or I’d have been in the yard when it happened… eek. Ray wasn’t home at the time, thank goodness. We both spend so much time outside.
The truck took out three 6″X6″ fence posts, four panels, traveled an unbelievable 150 feet, much of it in the air, and landed near the creek behind our house. The sound was unbelievable, an explosion. He missed the power pole by 2-3 feet, clipped the big cedar at the top of the photo, rolled those big boulders… the fact that there’s not MORE damage is pretty amazing.
Within moments of the impact, we had neighbours from all over the complex running to help: calling 911, checking the driver, checking on me and Luna, helping me with the next steps, insurance, police reports, witnesses… All of the Things.
I’m so grateful that no one was hurt. Fences can be replaced. Landscaping can be repaired. We got lucky, and that day, when our neighbours showed up they gave us their best selves.
THANK YOU!!!
Roxanne’s Writing World
I’m about three-quarters of the way through my studies to become a certified editor and I must admit, I’ll be glad when I’m done the remaining courses. I’m LOVING what I’m learning. It’s so interesting! But now I just want to use it all.
And I miss writing.
But stay tuned because I’ve got some exciting news coming up. 😁 Anyone ready for more RS books?
The F-Word Book Reviews?
- At March 27, 2019
- By Roxanne Snopek
- In Rox Reads, Roxanne Writes On
- 0
Do you read book reviews? I do. That and word-of-mouth is how I find some of my favourite new reads. There’s a book on sale in Kindle-land today called The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life. Have you read it? As soon as I saw it was available for $2.99, I checked it out. #1 New York Times bestseller, with over 1 million copies sold. I was about to one-click. Then I read some reviews.
In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the crap to show us how to stop trying to be “positive” all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people.
For decades, we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. “F**k positivity,” Mark Manson says. “Let’s be honest, shit is f**ked and we have to live with it.” In his wildly popular Internet blog, Manson doesn’t sugarcoat or equivocate. He tells it like it is—a dose of raw, refreshing, honest truth that is sorely lacking today. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is his antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected American society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up.
Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited—”not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault.” Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek.
There are only so many things we can give a f**k about so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about experience. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.
I agree with all of this and I’ve got no particular hangup about the F-word. Unfortunately, I’m 55, the tail end of the baby boomer generation and have absolutely not got a millenial mindset. The vagueness and lack of research citations mentioned in numerous reviews would be problematic for me. I can rarely recall hard substantiating data when expounding my own wisdom, but I do require it when paying to hear someone else expound theirs. Mark Manson might have enough wind to flap a flag, but he’s not fanning the flame of my interest.
What do you think?