Release Day! THE FRAGRANCE OF GERANIUMS Hits the {Virtual} Shelves!

Here it is, in all its God-given glory! Today is the official RELEASE DAY for The Fragrance of Geraniums!

May you enjoy it, be edified, and may our Lord be loved and worshipped more fully through this novel.

 

This book is available on Kindle and in paperback on Amazon.

Kindle: http://amzn.com/B00P4PB7W6

Paperback: http://amzn.com/1503022056

 

AND...

There's a Giveaway!
Feel free to SHARE the news!
 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal for The Fragrance of Geraniums

And it's here!

Sharing with you all today the beautiful, oh-so-fitting cover for The Fragrance of Geraniums... My thanks to Rachel Rossano of Rossano Designs for her lovely, meticulous work.

 

 

 

 

You may also wish to head over to my author Facebook page today... I'm giving away a paperback or Kindle copy (your choice!) to one randomly-selected person who shares my cover reveal Facebook post today! :-) Click here: Alicia's Author Page

 

 

Release Date, New Pinnables, and Lots of Thanksgiving!

Well, friends, I have been busy as a proverbial beaver this week, plugging away steadily to get this book out to you this fall.

This past week, I've formatted, proofed, re-formatted, re-proofed, re-formatted, and... I can safely let you in on the RELEASE DATE for THE FRAGRANCE OF GERANIUMS! I'm so thankful to the Lord for giving me a tremendous family who encourage and enable my writing... So thankful to the Lord God that He gives me the wisdom to know how to best revise and that He makes all thing beautiful in His time. :-)

So, without further ado, the release date for THE FRAGRANCE OF GERANIUMS, roughly categorized as historical women's fiction, is:

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2014!

Please tell your friends - Spread the word - And PIN AWAY :-) all these beautiful PINNABLES that announce the release date AND showcase a quote from the novel:

 

 

 

How the Novel Found its Name, Part 2

As I related in my last post, the phrase, "scent of geraniums," has long held a place in my mind... and I was pretty certain that someday I would write a book with just that title: The Scent of Geraniums.

Images usually come first for me when I'm thinking of a new story to write, and this time was no exception:

Geraniums, hanging on a white-beamed porch in the autumn sunlight.

Geraniums, nestled closely together on card-tables in an upstairs room - dark with books and dust.

A piano found its way into that room, as well.

And a dark-haired woman whose fingers danced across the keys as she played hymns.

Another woman, too, but this one entered the story via an old photograph from the 1930s - a bob-haired middle-aged woman, standing between two of her sons - poor, oh-so-very-poor... She could no longer remember a time of real happiness, though she had a worn-out smile pasted on her lips.

And a girl... a teenager wearing a tattered cardigan and flopping shoes... mesmerized by the geraniums on that dark-haired woman's porch.

So the images came together... The plot formed... And three-quarters of the way through, I wasn't quite sure that "The Scent of Geraniums" was the perfect title anymore.

The book had become about so much more, and I wanted the title to convey that, somehow.

So, I played around with words, writing down everything-everything-everything that had anything remotely to do with the book's story, theme, characters, etc.  I ended up with about two dozen real possibilities for a title. Yes, that's right: Two dozen.

After a couple of weeks of tossing the titles over and over, I gave the list to five people and asked them to circle the top three titles that captured their interest - without knowing what anyone else chose. I would pick whatever title rose to the top.

So I thought.

Turns out, when you give a list of two dozen titles to five people, you get very little agreement!

And the choice reverted to me again. I considered The Scent of Geraniums again as the title. But then two people told me it reminded them immediately of a strange movie by a similar name with a different object-of-the-preposition. :-)

Time for a synonym search: And there popped up "fragrance."

Hmm... And that reminded me so strongly of the passage in the Gospels in which the woman pours a jar of expensive perfume over Jesus' feet and wipes them with her hair. And it says, "The fragrance filled the room." {John 12}

And that's what The Fragrance of Geraniums is about: the grace of emptiness before a Lord who suffered in our stead... and the real hope with which He fills us.

So, "The Scent of Geraniums" became The Fragrance of Geraniums.

And I thank the Lord for providing such a fitting name for this story, in just the right time.

If you'd like to see more pictures that have guided/inspired my storytelling journey this time around, I invite you to check out my Pinterest board for The Fragrance of Geraniums... I'm still adding to it, so feel free to follow the board to keep up-to-date. :) Just click on the widget below, and you'll be taken there:

Follow Alicia Roque Ruggieri's board The Fragrance of Geraniums on Pinterest.

Grace and peace,
Alicia

How the Novel Found its Name

My stories usually have titles before they possess a fully-fleshed-out plot. That certainly was the case for this latest one: The Fragrance of Geraniums, releasing in mid-November, Lord willing! :-) Yet that title has evolved since the story's inception...

Do you know what geraniums smell like?

When I was a very little girl, my mother worked part-time as a nurse's assistant for a very elderly man with Parkinson's disease. The man's wife {and primary caregiver} didn't mind at all if my mother brought me along, so I spent a few afternoons each week in their living room, reading The Boxcar Children, or sometimes played on their large property.

The patient's wife - Alana was her name - gave me one of the strongest impressions of my childhood, without meaning to do it, I'm sure. And this is whence the upcoming novel's title comes:

During one winter, Alana asked if I would like to come upstairs to help her with something - I don't remember now what it was. So I traipsed up the steep, ancient staircase behind that spry, white-haired woman. At the top of the stair, we entered a dark but not gloomy hallway, and then Alana led the way into one of the rooms.

That is where I first experienced the scent of geraniums: spicy, unique... as my mother puts it, "not a pretty smell, really."

But an unforgettable one. And I never forgot the smell of that room - the darkened library-room where Alana "wintered" her geraniums - for, in New England, we can't keep our geraniums out year-round. I remember the stubby stalks of all those potted plants, lined up on card-tables, little patches of soil dusting their surfaces. I recall the surprise of realizing that the plants still lived - though Alana had pruned their scarlet blooms and dead bits.

The fragrance of geraniums - more emitting from the plant-part than from the flowers! - filled Alana's library-room, mingling with the musty scent of old books lining the shelves.

And, as a five-or-six-year-old, I felt that I'd been let into a mystery: There was a secret meaning to the scent of geraniums... though I didn't know yet what it was. And that is what the original title of this soon-to-be-released novel was: The Scent of Geraniums... which eventually became The Fragrance of Geraniums. More on that process next time. :-)

Update on The Fragrance of Geraniums' release: I have been editing-editing-editing to get this story to you all with its message of grace clear and lovely. Next is formatting. My Launch Team members should be receiving their review copies shortly - hurrah! :-) -  and then, dear readers - dear patient readers - The Fragrance of Geraniums should release in mid-November!

Title Reveal! And the Name is...

And the name of the new novel is...

Please feel free to SHARE and PIN so that more readers will have this novel to look forward to this harvest season. Thank you!

Coming up on this blog in the weeks ahead: How the novel found its title; a sneak-peek at the characters you'll meet in its pages; a giveaway; more pinnables... :-) This is a blessed and exciting, full-of-work time as this novel is born; I appreciate your prayers for me so very much.

Grace and peace,
Alicia

The Geranium Story: What's it all about, anyway?

So what's this "Geranium Story" all about, anyway?

 

It's about Lillian Picoletti...

At fifteen, she's become adept at hiding her wretched home-life - at not getting too close to anyone outside her family - at bearing up under the tremendous emotional strain her papa puts on their family. She desperately presses to finish high school and escape the gutter in which she was born.

 

It's about her mother, Sarah...

Trapped by religious and social constraints in an abusive, loveless marriage, she can't understand why her daughter Lillian won't submit to the lot in which she's placed. Yet Sarah, too, yearns for the peace and rest of which the radio preacher speaks.

 

It's about their neighbor, Emmeline...

And of how the loss of her own deepest desire opens verdant pathways into the lives of those around her.

 

 

Told from multiple perspectives, this 1930s-era coming-of-age novel tells the story of heart-wrenching sorrows alchemized by the Heavenly Father's redeeming grace.

 

Does it sound interesting? I'm so excited to share it with you - hopefully in mid-November {final release date to be determined}!

 

If you would like to join my Launch Team for this novel, I still have a couple of spaces open! Check out the link for more info: CLICK HERE.

 

 

Prospective readers, take note: This novel contains realistic {though not graphic} depictions of natural childbirth. It also contains {but does not condone} non-graphic depictions of physical abuse, adulterous relationships, and gambling. Intended for ages 15+.  This novel is written from a Christian worldview.

This post may be shared with:
Strangers and Pilgrims, The Modest Mom, What Joy is Mine, Yes They Are All Ours, Missional Call, A Mama's Story, Mom's the Word, Rich Faith Rising, Time Warp Wife, Cornerstone Confessions, Mom's Morning Coffee, So Much at Home, Raising Homemakers, Hope in Every Season, A Wise Woman Builds Her Home, Woman to Woman Ministries, Whole-Hearted Home, A Soft Gentle Voice, My Daily Walk in His Grace, Messy Marriage, My Teacher's Name is Mama, The Charm of Home, Graced Simplicity, Children Are A Blessing, Mittenstate Sheep and Wool, Imparting Grace, Homestead Lady, Deborah Jean's Dandelion House, Preparedness Mama, A Look at the Book, Essential Thing Devotions, Count My Blessings, Beauty Observed, Christian Mommy Blogger, Serenity You, Renewed Daily, Sunday Stillness, The Beauty in His Grip, Tales of a Kansas Farm Mom

I'm Looking for a Few Good Women {or Men} - Launch Team!

Would you like to receive my latest book - the "Geranium story" I've been talking about - for FREE... BEFORE it's released?

Does it sound too good to be true?

It's not!

Read on to find out how YOU can be a part of my "LAUNCH TEAM."

HOW DOES A LAUNCH TEAM WORK?

Here's What I Do:

• Several weeks before I release my new book, I'll send you a digital copy via e-mail for free. You can choose between mobi {Kindle} or PDF format. These are called "advanced reader copies," or "ARCs."

Here's What You Do:

• You read the book before its official release date and post your honest review of the book {or a link to that review} on Amazon.com, as well as on any other social media and/or review sites you enjoy: Goodreads, Twitter, your blog, Pinterest, etc. I'll give you more details how you do this when I send you the book. Don't worry if you've never done it before; it's very easy!

That's it!

Why Do I Want to Give Away Books?

Why do I want to give away books, you might ask? Well, reviews help other readers make a decision about whether or not they should purchase a book, and it's a big help to have some in place before or on the official "launch day!"

 

Who Should Join the Launch Team?

Anyone who enjoys reading realistic, God-centered fiction written from a Christian world-view AND who enjoy sharing that experience with others through blogging, pinning, reviewing, sharing, etc. If you've read The House of Mercy, you know that I strive to write real-to-life, multi-perspective fiction that doesn't shy away from sensitive topics and that looks to Scripture as the final Word.

 

How Many People Can Join the Team?

Right now, I have room for a few more good folk on the Launch Team for "the Geranium story"!  {I'm so excited to share this story with you, by the way!}

 

How Should You Go About Joining?

If you'd like to be a part of my Launch Team, please use the CONTACT FORM on the right side of the home page of this blog. I'll get back to you promptly, letting you know if I have any spaces left on my team.

Onward Ho!

With The House of Mercy, I didn't set out with any goal, other than to write a story - a good story, the sort of story that I want to read. "The How" of The House of Mercy is a blog-post for another time, but let it suffice for me to say that I wrote the first sort-of-kind-of draft (though should I even call it that, as it was so different - practically unrecognizable - from the final draft?) about ten or twelve years before the Lord led me to publish the novel. Until a few years ago, I had no end goal in sight ... I just picked away at the storyline, adding here and there, changing this bit and that. Eventually, by God's grace, it was finished, in almost-final-draft form, without me really needing to set daily or weekly or monthly goals for myself in order to do it.

That's not so much the case with my writing at present. For years, I've kept a file on my computer with story and character ideas, like a gardener storing away seed packets for her spring garden. When I look forward to these ideas blossoming within my writing, I'm filled with joy and delight. Yet the hard work of tilling the soil, dropping the seeds in just the right places, watering and feeding the tender plants lies before me yet - oh, so long it seems! - before I see the full or results of much hard labor.

Yet now, as August turns into September, my story-garden ripens. And grows...

The story I've been telling you about - "the Geranium story" - I thought I would be finished with the rough draft last week; I also thought it would be a "short novel," running about 70,000 words. {My "rough drafts" aren't that rough. I take a little more time with them and then have less revisions to do.}

Then, around last Wednesday, I passed 70,000 words and knew the story hadn't finished. {I actually have the ending basically done. It's the middle that needs some filling... rather like a donut, stories taste better with jelly or frosting stuffed inside them. :-)}

So I reset my goal: Finish the story this week. I write between 2,000 and 3,500 words a day, depriving myself of all forms of carrot cake unless I do so {just kidding}. So I figured, "the geranium story" can't have more than 10,000 words left, can it? I have the rest plotted out already...

Guess what? Yesterday, I hit 78,000 words. And the story isn't finished. Not yet.

But soon. Very soon indeed.

Thank you, friends, for covering my writing {and me} in your prayers.

Onward ho! I see the camp in the near distance...