In Store Author Event: Mardel in Colorado Springs, Saturday December 22th -- Christmas book just in time for Christmas!

I will be at the Mardel Christian bookstore in Colorado Springs, Colorado, this Saturday, December 22th, signing my new book Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus.

For details about this book, please click the "New: Prophecies Fulfilled Books" tab up above.

The Mardel store in Colorado Springs is located at 5964 Barnes Road. That's just east of Powers. Turn east at the traffic light, then turn north into the shopping center. You'll see Mardel's big sign next to the Hobby Lobby.

I will be there from 10:00 - 4:00, later if we're busy. I think they're putting me in the book section which is located toward the back of the store, so when you come in look for the book area toward the back of the store and to your right.

Please stop by and see my exciting new book! Through it you can read through the Christmas story and take a look at 35 different prophecies. Then travel back in time to see who wrote the prophecy, when (including the date if possible), and in what context. Then travel forward in time to see how it was fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.

This book is not only great for your individual reading, but also makes a great study for groups or book clubs. Includes application questions with each chapter. It is easy enough for those who are new to Bible reading to learn a lot, but also has some little-known facts and in depth study to interest those who have read the Bible for years. It's a great resource with all the information. Makes a great gift.

I hope to see you there. Please come say hello and let me know you saw it on my blog! Or Twitter. Or Facebook. Or Linked In. Or just where you saw it!

Travel back in time to the prophecies of the first Christmas
and your future Christmases will never be the same.

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Please Vote for Book of the Year! -- Grandparenting Through Obstacles nominated

My book with Renee Gray-Wilburn has been nominated for "Book of the Year" at The Book Club Network!

To win we need your vote! Will you please vote right now? I don't know how long voting will be open, but I think it closes soon.

Vote here: http://www.bookfun.org/

If you haven't joined this site before, you must join to vote but it's free.

See the boxes on the right-hand side? Scroll down to the NONFICTION box, click  my book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles, then click to vote.

While you're there, the top box is for FICTION -- please vote for Jennifer Fromke's novel A Familiar Shore. (Jennifer writes for the same publisher as me so her publicity for winning Fiction Book of the Year would help me, too!)

Would you also please use the share buttons at the bottom of this post to send this information to your Twitter feed, Facebook, blog, e-mail, etc.?

Voting closes soon and to win we need all the votes and all the help we can get. THANK YOU!

Catch Dianne on WYLL / KC180 Radio in Chicago area Tuesday

I'm thrilled that I will be talking about Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus on the radio in the the Chicago area Tuesday afternoon!

I will be the guest on the show "180 with Karl Clauson" from 4:10 - 4:25 CENTRAL time (3:10 - 3:25 here in Colorado) on Tuesday, December 18th.

Not in the Chicago area? Listen online here:

www.KC180.com

www.WYLL.com

No matter where you are I hope you'll tune in for these fifteen minutes to hear what I'm going to say. I'll be interested to hear what I'm going to say, too!

Should be fun!

In Store Author Event: The Greatest Gift & Scripture Supply, Pueblo, Saturday December 15th

I will be at The Greatest Gift and Scripture Supply bookstore in Pueblo, Colorado, on Saturday, December 15th, signing my new book Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus.

For details about this book, please click the "New: Prophecies Fulfilled Books" tab up above.

The Greatest Gift and Scripture Supply bookstore is located at 505 N. Grand Avenue in Pueblo, Colorado. I will be there from 10:00 - 4:00.

I will also have my Grandparenting Through Obstacles and Deliver Me books with me.

This book is not only great for your individual reading, small group Bible studies, book clubs, and family devotions, it also makes a great gift for friends or family.
Please stop by and see my exciting new book!

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In Store Author Event: The Lighthouse, La Junta, Thursday December 13th

I will be at The Lighthouse Christian bookstore in La Junta, Colorado, the Thursday, December 13th, signing my new book Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus.

For details about this book, please click the "New: Prophecies Fulfilled Books" tab up above.

The Lighthouse is located at 215 Colorado Avenue in La Junta. I will be there from 10:00 - 4:00.

I will also have my Grandparenting Through Obstacles and Deliver Me books with me.

Please stop by and see my exciting new book! This book is not only great for your individual reading, but also makes a great gift.

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In Store Author Event: Mardel, Littleton, Saturday December 8th

I will be at the Mardel Christian Bookstore and Education Supply in Littleton, Colorado, this Saturday, December 8th, signing my new book Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus.

 Elsi Dodge will be there too. Else contributed a story to my last book Grandparenting Through Obstacles. She also has several other books, including Life Lessons from Dads (Write Integrity Press).

I will also have my Grandparenting Through Obstacles and Deliver Me books with me.

Please stop by and see my exciting new book! Mardel is located at 4887 S. Wadsworth Way in Littleton. We'll be there from 11:00 - 3:00. (And plan to have free cookies!)

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My Guest Blog Post on Christian E-Books

Christian E-books invited me to be their Guest Blogger! You can read my post here:

Rediscovering Christ in the Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus by Me!

Please stop by for a visit and Tweet it or Share it on Facebook.

Christian E-Books is an interesting site for e-Reader lovers. You may have noticed they include links to purchase the books on both Kindle and Nook at the bottom of every Guest Post. Find all their Guest Posts on the menu button under "Books by Authors," then the alphabetical listing of the author's name.

They also have a list of FREE e-books on their home page. Here is today's fiction list: Free Fiction eBook List (12.5.12)  Look for the latest list on their home page. They also archive these lists.

If you own and love an e-Reader, you should bookmark this site!

Please VOTE! Grandparenting book nominated for Book of the Year at BookFun.org

Whoo-hoo! My book Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ has been nominated for Book of the Year at www.BookFun.org! Would you please VOTE ?

If you're not a member of The Book Club Network, you'll need to join before you can vote, however membership is free. Every month The Book Club Network takes nominations from members for Book of the Month in both fiction and nonfiction. The top three books nominated are then put to a vote. Grandparenting Through Obstacles was nominated in August, but came in second in the voting.

In the December 2012 issue of CBA Retailers+Resources (page 20), owners of The Book Club Network Fred and Nora St. Laurent, wrote, "Coming in a a strong second place with 39.3% of the vote was Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ by Renee Gray-Wilburn and Dianne E.Butts (Pix-N-Pens, p, $15.99, ISBN: 9781938092176...). This book received more nominations than any other nonfiction selection we have had to date."

Now, The Book Club Network is conducting their Book of the Year vote and we need you to go to the site and vote for Grandparenting Through Obstacles! You'll find it in the nonfiction category.

While you're there, please also vote in the fiction division for Jennifer Fromke's novel A Familiar Shore.

TO VOTE:

Go to http://www.bookfun.org/

Voting boxes are in the right-hand column. Select one book for fiction then click the box at the bottom of that box to cast your ballot.

Then select Grandparenting Through Obstacles in the nonfiction box and click the button at the bottom of the box to cast your ballot.



I thank you very much for your time and your vote. (In this case, your vote really will make a difference!)

Today I'm Guest Blogging at Easy Writer Blog

Today I'm guest blogger over at Kathi Macias' Easy Writer blog.

Kathi is an author of more than 40 books as well as a biker gal, friend and mentor. Don't miss her book, Unexpected Christmas Hero, and the story behind the man on the cover.

You can find my guest post here: Guest Post from Author Dianne E. Butts about Her Wonderful New Christmas Book!

I hope you'll stop by my guest post. Please leave a comment and/or share it on your Facebook or Twitter feed. Thank you! And thanks, Kathi, for having me on Easy Writer today!

Meet the new book: Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus

I'm so excited about my new book, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus! Let me tell you about it. Through this book you will . . .

Travel back in time and discover the original prophecies written hundreds or thousands of years, or only months or moments, before they were fulfilled. Then travel forward in time to see them fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.


Explore 35 prophecies including the Virgin Birth, the Star, the birthplace of Bethlehem, the angel’s message to the shepherds guarding the sheep intended for sacrifice at the Temple, what it meant for Mary and Joseph to "present" Jesus to the LORD at the Temple, what happend when the met Simeon and Anna, and so much more!



In every chapter you’ll find:

• a “Key Verse” highlighting the prophecy
• Where in the Bible the prophecy is found
• Who originally wrote it
• When it was written, including the date if possible
• The context the prophecy was written in
• a “Prophecy Fulfilled Bible Reading” to read from your own Bible
• “Apply it to Your Life” questions
• a “Final Thought”
• a suggested “Prayer”
• “For more, read” Scripture verses on related topics

Discover the prophecies that predict, prove, and proclaim Jesus the Christ.

Travel back in time to the first Christmas and your future Christmases will never be the same.

This book is excellent for individual reading or group or family study. Let Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus help you and your family keep Christ in Christmas this year.

New Book Released! Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus

I'm so pleased to announce my new book, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus, has just released!

The print book is currently available at Amazon. It is also available on Kindle and Nook. The print version will arrive at BarnesandNoble.com and all the other online outlets soon.

You may also order the book from your favorite bookstore. Ask for it by title or by ISBN: 978-1-938092-27-5

This book is great for your personal reading, daily devotion, or small group. Whether in a group or individually, this book will deepen your faith this Christmas season.

Featuring 35 different prophecies that were predicted hundreds or thousands of years before they came to pass, or in some cases months or moments, you'll see how each was fulfilled in the birth of Jesus. Some you'll know: The Virgin Birth. The Star. Born in Bethlehem.

Others will challenge you: The Presentation at the Temple. The prophetic purpose of the sheep the shepherds watched over. And the prophetic meanings of the gifts from the Magi.

This new book will encourage your faith, comfort you in our troubled time, and challenge you to apply what you learn to our day today and to your own time.

Travel back through time to see the prophecies given, then travel forward in time to see them fulfilled in the birth of Jesus. Your future Christmases will never be the same.

Reminder! - Dianne's on the radio today!

Today I'm on the Dottie Coffman Show on WIMO 1300 AM radio in Georgia. I'm on from 9:00 - 9:30 am Eastern time (7:00 - 7:30 Colorado time). Or tune in to WIMO at www.WIMORadio.com at the same time.

The show will re-air on www.MoralRadio.com at 4:00 pm Eastern (2:00 Mountain) this afternoon.

We're talking about my next book coming out later this month, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus.

Hear Me on WIMO Radio Tomorrow!

On Thursday, November 8, I'll be on the Dottie Coffman Show on WIMO AM radio in Georgia!

Dottie and I did a show back in August about my latest book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles.

This Thursday we'll be talking about my next book coming out later this month, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus. I don't have a release date yet, but we're hoping to have this book available before Thanksgiving for the Christmas season.

Hear all about the book on the Dottie Coffman Show tomorrow!

I'll be on from 9:00 - 9:30 am Eastern time (7:00 - 7:30 Colorado time).  The show will re-air on www.MoralRadio.com at 4:00 pm Eastern (2:00 Mountain).

If you're in that area, you can find WIMO at 1300 AM. If you're not in the area, you can listen in www.WIMORadio.com at the same time.

Reminder! - Dianne is a Guest on 5020Genesis Blog

Just wanted to remind you I'm the featured guest over on Melissa Finnegan's 5020Genesis blog today.

Please stop by to read my story.  Then if you wouldn't mind, please share it via Twitter or Facebook. Leave a comment. Join the book giveaway and you might win a copy of Deliver Me!

Thanks for stopping by!

Guest Blogging on 5020Genesis Blog Tomorrow

I'm scheduled to be the featured guest on Melissa Finnegan's 5020Genesis blog on Wednesday, November 7th.  She has an interesting blog, with Genesis 50:20 true stories from the lives of her bloggers. Looking for encouragement? Check it out.

We'll be doing a book giveaway of my Deliver Me book, so if you don't have a copy yet you might want to check that out.

Please stop by for a visit. You might learn something about me you didn't know!

And please leave a comment or Tweet or Facebook her post.

Thank you!!

Announcing My New Book!: Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus

I am so thrilled to announce my new three-book series coming from Pix-N-Pens Publishing: the "Prophecies Fulfilled" nonfiction series of books from yours truly.

The first book is being fast-tracked to be published this month for the Christmas season! 

And I already have the book's front cover to share! Introducing:



Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus

The second book in the series, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Death & Resurrection of Jesus, will be released in the Spring of 2013.

The third book in the series, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Life of Jesus, will be released in the Summer of 2013.

Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus looks at 35 prophecies in the Bible that were fulfilled in the events surrounding the birth of Jesus. Each of these 35 short chapters could make a wonderful daily devotional, or explore them with your family, children, small group, or Bible study.

In every chapter you’ll find:

˜  A "Key Verse” highlighting the prophecy

˜  Where in the Bible the prophecy is found

˜  Who originally wrote it

˜  When it was written, including the date if possible

˜  The context the prophecy was written in

˜  A “Prophecy Fulfilled Bible Reading” to read from your own Bible

˜  “Apply it to Your Life” questions

˜  A “Final Thought”

˜  A suggested “Prayer”

˜  “For more, read” Scripture verses on related topics

Travel back in time and discover the original prophecies written hundreds or thousands of years, or only months or moments, before they were fulfilled. Then travel forward in time to see them fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.

Explore 35 prophecies including the Virgin Birth, the Star, the birthplace of Bethlehem, the angel’s message to the shepherds guarding the temple sheep, and Mary and Joseph presenting Jesus to the LORD at the Temple just in time to meet Simeon and Anna.

Discover the prophecies that predict, prove, and proclaim Jesus the Christ.

Travel back in time to the first Christmas and your future Christmases will never be the same!

~ ~ ~

You will be able to order Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus from your favorite bookstore or Christian bookstore as well as from Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and all online outlets. The book will also be available for Nook, Kindle, and other e-readers.

More information will be posted as it becomes available. I hope to be able to take pre-publication orders soon.

Book Signing at The Lighthouse on Tuesday

I will be at The Lighthouse Christian bookstore Tuesday September 25th from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM signing Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ.

Twenty true stories depict challenges grandparents face in influencing their grandchildren with their Christian faith and how they are overcoming those challenges.

This book addresses four specific challenges grandparents face:

• The Challenge of Parents Not Walking with God;
• Long-Distance Relationships;
• Non-Traditional Families (blended families, single-parent parents, and more);
• Challenges in Partnering with Parents

Each chapter includes, "Grandparents in the Bible," "Points to Ponder," "Steps to Take," "Scriptures to Study," and "One Way to Pray." Also includes resources, discussion questions, ideas and more.

For every grandparent who longs to share his or her faith in Jesus Christ with their grandchildren but needs inspiration for the "how-to," ideas, suggestions, or simply to know they are not the only one who struggles with challenges. Makes a great gift for a grandparent!

I hope to see you Tuesday at The Lighthouse is at 215 Colorado Avenue in La Junta, Colorado.



Writing for "Thinking About Suicide" Blog

There's a new blog trying to reach people who are thinking about suicide.

www.ThinkingAboutSuicide.com is rising to the to of Google searches for information on suicide. Often, when someone is contemplating taking their life, they turn to Google to find ways to carry it out.

That's where Thinking About Suicide comes in, offering information, help, and hope to the hopeless.

I think a lot of people are afraid to visit or share the information about this blog, possibly because they are afraid people will think they are thinking about suicide themselves. But the fact is, someone you know, or someone in your social networking circles, might be thinking about suicide. How many times have we lost someone to suicide and everybody says they had no idea this person was struggling! So here's how you can help:

• Simply visit www.ThinkingAboutSuicide.com
• Use the Share buttons at the bottom of any of the posts and send the link to your Twitter or Facebook.

Two simple steps. You never know who you can reach -- perhaps just in the nick of time.

Here are some of my articles:

• World Suicide Prevention Day
• Olympian Kayla Harrison
• Excerpts from my book Dear America's:  "10 Things I've Learned About Grief"
• Junior Seau

You can find more of the articles I'm writing by typing my name in the search box at the top of the blog at www.ThinkingAboutSuicide.com .

New Book Coming for Christmas

I'm very excited that my publisher is working on the book cover art for my next book:

Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus

Wish I could share the cover with you, but nothing is finalized yet. You can bet I'll be sharing it here as soon as it's available.

As I was writing it, I found 35 prophecies fulfilled in Jesus' birth. You may find more (or less!) or count them differently. But this book will have 35 short chapters, each on a prophecy fulfilled in the birth of Jesus. It will make a great devotional for the Advent season.

If you're looking for a way to deepen your faith as you celebrate the birth of Christ this Christmas, or if you're looking for a small group or individual study for the Christmas season, I think you'll find Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus will fill that need nicely.

Watch for it to release just before Thanksgiving for the Christmas season.

Pregnancy Center Conference today

Today I'll be leaving for the Rocky Mountain Conference. This is a conference especially for the staff and volunteers of pro-life pregnancy centers.

I'm hoping to talk with these staff members and volunteers about my book that was created especially for them: Deliver Me: Hope, Help, and Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy.

Deliver Me came about because of my work on a board of directors of a small town pregnancy center. I found so many people, including my Christian friends, had no idea what we were doing in that center. They had a lot of misconceptions: that we were referring women for abortion, that we were encouraging promiscuity...

I wanted to gather true stories to showcase just what we were doing in that center. I wanted people to know the truth of what we were accomplishing. The stories of people who come to pregnancy centers are often hard stories filled with heartache, but so often through the help they receive these stories become beautiful.

That's what I wanted to share! That's what I want people to know. I wanted women and men to know that they could find caring, compassionate help. I wanted Christians to know they could confidently support their local pro-life pregnancy center. If you'll read these stories, I think you'll be convinced.

Those hard and beautiful stories fill the pages of Deliver Me. Fifty-four stories about women who want to keep their babies, men who have lost a child to abortion, women who have given a child for adoption, and more, each has a connection to a pro-life pregnancy center, a connection to compassionate help people found there. They show the picture of what pregnancy centers are really doing in and for our communities. Their story--that of the pregnancy centers--is beautiful. I hope you will check it out.

Deliver Me:

• won 2012 "Book of the Year" (Family/Relationships) from Christian Small Publishers Association
• was one of four finalists for the 2012 Golden Scroll Nonfiction Book of the Year

So I'm off to the Rocky Mountain Conference hoping to convince pregnancy center workers that Deliver Me is a valuable resource, both for their clients and their supporters.



Grandparenting Through Obstacles makes GRAND Magazine's Top 25 Books for Grandparents List!

I'm thrilled that my latest book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles, has been listed as one of GRAND magazine's "Top 25 Books for Grandparents"!

GRAND magazine is a digital magazine for grandparents.

You can see Grandparenting Through Obstacles made GRAND editors' top 25 books for grandparents list here.

You can subscribe To GRAND! The Online Magazine for Today's Grandparents ($19.95/12 issues) here.

Thank you GRAND magazine! We're honored.

Dianne is Taping for TV

Today is an exciting day! I'm taping a TV show.

It's for the local Colorado station KPJR, Channel 38, which is Trinity Broadcasting Network. I will be a guest on the local Praise the Lord TV program.

I will be talking about my life story and what God has done and is doing in my life.

The show will air a few weeks later -- I don't know when yet. If you miss it or don't get that channel (which I don't here at my house) don't worry, eventually I'll get a link where we can watch it online.

Now, if I can just figure out what to wear . . .

Remember September 11, 2001

Just like that morning in 2001, September 11th occurs on a Tuesday on this 11th anniversary. As painful as it might be, it is only right that we remember September 11, 2001, and those who died, or whose lives were forever changed, on that day.

It was in the days and few weeks following the Terrorist Attacks on the United States that I wrote my first book. I, I'm sure like so many, wanted to do something. But we felt so helpless. What could we possibly do?

I can't answer that for others. But for a writer, what else could I do but write? And so I wrote Dear America: A Letter of Comfort & Hope to a Grieving Nation (Ampelos Press, 2002).

This little book is still available in print. It was published 6 months to the day after September 11, 2001 -- on March 11, 2002. This year, for its tenth anniversary, Dear America was republished on Kindle.

Still relevant today, Dear America includes:

• my story of living through grief and discovering God
• 10 Things I've Learned About Grief
• a brief telling of the over-arching story of the Bible
• Q & A about Christians and Muslims
• helps to begin reading and understanding the Bible



For anyone who wonders where God is in the hard times, find answers in this letter to a nation:

Dear America.

Radio Interview on KRDO in Colorado Springs

Renee and I were privileged to have Cavin Harper, executive director of the Christian Grandparenting Network, write the foreword for our book.

Cavin is also the author of Not On Our Watch!: Courageous Grandparenting in a Turbulent World, which is a call for “grandparents and parents to rise above the conventional view of grandparenting to embrace radically courageous life that stands apart from the politically correct crowd. It’s a call to intentionality—not settling for simply being good parents and grandparents, but choosing to stand in the gap and live as conduits of grace and truth for the next generations.”

Another hat Cavin wears is radio host of his own show on a mainstream over-the-air station in Colorado Springs. Cavin invited Renee and me to be his featured guests on his radio show called “Not on My Watch: A Call for Radical Grandparenting in Turbulent Times” on September 2nd. We talked with Cavin about our book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles.

The show aired on KRDO News Radio at 105.5 FM / 1240 AM at 7:30 that Sunday morning. A podcast is now available. Here's a link: "Not on My Watch" with Renee Gray-Wilburn and Dianne E. Butts.

Please enjoy listening in as Renee and I talk with Cavin about our book. And please invite the grandparents you know to listen also. Thanks!

New Book Trailer for Grandparenting Through Obstacles

Happy National Grandparents Day! If you haven't found a gift for the grandparent(s) in your life, our new book makes a great gift for Christian grandparents.

Please follow us on Twitter: @GParentObstacle

Visit our Grandparenting Through Obstacles Facebook Page.

Check out our blog: http://GrandparentingThruObstacles.wordpress.com/

Enjoy this short book trailer about our book!

Recenty Interviewed on Blog: Ink from an Earthen Vessel

My coauthor, Renee, and I were recently interviewed by Ada Brownell on her lovely blog "Ink from an Earthen Vessel: Stick-to-Your Soul Encouragement."

You can read the interview here: Grandparenting Through Obstacles.

Please stop by for a moment and a read and leave a comment if you like. Thanks!

Book Signing at Mardel Christian Bookstore on Saturday

Just in time for National Grandparents Day, Renee and I will be at the Mardel Christian Bookstore tomorrow, Saturday September 8th from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM signing Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ.

Mardel is at 4887 S. Wadsworth Way, Littleton, Colorado.

Remember that Sunday September 9th is National Grandparents Day. This new book makes a great gift for any Christian grandparent.

For a description of the book, please see the previous post. This book is for every grandparent who longs to share his or her faith in Jesus Christ with their grandchildren but needs inspiration for the "how-to," ideas, suggestions, or simply to know they are not the only one who struggles with challenges.

I hope to see tomorrow, Saturday, at the Mardel Christian Bookstore. Stop by for a free cookie!



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Book Signing at The Greatest Gift Bookstore on Friday

Hey, if you're in the Pueblo area, stop by The Greatest Gift Bookstore tomorrow, Friday 9/7, between 12:00 noon and 5:00.

I'll be there signing my newest book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ.

Remember that Sunday September 9th is National Grandparents Day. This new book makes a great gift for any Christian grandparent.

These twenty true stories depict challenges grandparents face in influencing their grandchildren with their Christian faith and how they are overcoming those challenges.

The book addresses four specific challenges grandparents face:

• The Challenge of Parents Not Walking with God;
• Long-Distance Relationships;
• Non-Traditional Families (blended families and more);
• Challenges in Partnering with Parents

Each chapter includes, "Grandparents in the Bible," "Points to Ponder," "Steps to Take," "Scriptures to Study," and "One Way to Pray." Also includes resources, discussion questions, ideas and more.

For every grandparent who longs to share his or her faith in Jesus Christ with their grandchildren but needs inspiration for the "how-to," ideas, suggestions, or simply to know they are not the only one who struggles with challenges.

I hope to see you Friday afternoon at The Greatest Gift & Scripture Supply, 505 North Grand in Pueblo.



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Dianne's New Book Releases: Grandparenting Through Obstacles

My newest book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ, coauthored with Renee Gray-Wilburn, released August 17th. Boy have we been busy with marketing it! I'm blaming that for why I haven't been able to put it on this blog until now!

National Grandparents Day is September 9th this year, and this book makes a great gift for Christian grandparents. It's available through all the online outlets (you'll find some links below). Or you can order it from your local bookstore.

Inside you'll find twenty true stories by real grandparents about the challenges grandparents face, including long-distance grandparenting, when the kid's parents aren't walking with God, the challenge of nontraditional families, and partnering with parents.

Based on the true story featured in the chapter, each chapter also includes "Grandparents in the Bible," "Scriptures to Study," application or discussion questions, "One Way to Pray," lots of room to jot your own notes, ideas, and prayers, and more. Also includes resources and ideas. A very practical guide.

Find it here:

• On Amazon
• On Kindle
• At Barnes & Noble
• On Nook

Follow us on Twitter: @GParentObstacle
Find us on Facebook: Grandparenting Through Obstacles
Visit the book's blog: www.GrandparentingThruObstacles.wordpress.com

Vacationing in Orlando

After the Advanced Writers and Speaker's Association conference and the Golden Scroll banquet, Hal and I enjoyed a few days in Orlando. We visited the Universal Resorts theme park and had a great time riding the rides for two days! Including getting totally drenched in Jurassic Park.

Then we spent a day at the Holy Land Experience, which was just plain awesome. If you ever get to Orlando, I hope you'll go. Here are some highlights:



Worship center before the Temple.

Worship starts every day here in front of the Temple. If you know me at all, you know that my passion is studying the Holy Temple, so it was fantastic for me to sit before this replica of it. I'm hoping to write what I've learned about the Temple, and there are some possibilities for doing so on the horizon which I am very excited about.

Me and Hal with a replica of the Jesus Boat at the Holy Land Experience.

Here is me and Hal, with Magnificent Hope, in front of a life-sized replica of the Jesus Boat. It was fun to see this since I recently wrote an article about this very Jesus Boat for www.FindingGodDaily.com.





Replica of first century Jerusalem with Herod's Temple

Here is a replica of Jerusalem just after the time of Christ. Of course front and center is the Temple where Jesus often visited, known at Herod's Temple. Of course it wasn't to worship Herod at all, but was so called because Herod the Great built it. Herod added greatly to the grounds. I'm sure you know the Temple is no longer standing, destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D., but the western wall is still there. One day this Temple will be rebuilt, according to Bible prophecies.

One place I couldn't photograph was the Scriptorium. If you visit the Holy Land Experience, you truly must take the hour tour of the Scriptorium. It is a museum of Bibles and their history. Most impactful for me was the Matthew's Bible with the brown stain smeared across it, which is the blood of the owner who was martyred simply for owning it.

It was a great trip and a fun place to visit. I hope you'll make the trip to the Holy Land Experience in Orlando, Florida, some time soon.

Deliver Me a Finalist at AWSA's Golden Scroll Nonfiction "Book of the Year"

No way! Has it really been nearly three months since I posted to this blog?! It has been a busy, busy but exciting summer. Let me fill you in, but it will take several posts.

Waaaay back in my May 28th post I told you I had just learned that my book, Deliver Me, was selected as a finalist for the 2012 Golden Scroll Nonfiction Book of the Year award. The award is presented at the annual banquet hosted by the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association (AWSA). This year the banquet was in Orlando on July 15, 2012. It was wonderful to have Hal there with me for the first time on one of my business trips!

Hal accompanied me to the 2012 AWSA Golden Scroll banquet in Orlando, Florida

I felt so honored to be one of four finalists for the Nonfiction Book of the Year award! The other three finalist books were all published by well-known traditional publishers, so for me to be standing on that platform in front of about 150 agents, editors, publishers, and authors with my self-published book was a wonderful recognition of my book and its quality and worth to readers.

In then end we didn't win the award, but to simply be a finalist was huge. I was awarded a beautiful framed certificate by the founder of AWSA, Linda Evans Shepherd. It was a moment I will truly treasure for a lifetime.



Dianne with AWSA founder Linda Evans Shepherd who presented a certificate to Deliver Me
 for being a finalist in the 2012 Golden Scroll Nonfiction Book of the Year awards.

This was Deliver Me's second nomination for Book of the Year. Earlier this year Deliver Me won the Christian Small Publishers Association's "2012 Book of the Year" in the Family/Relationships category.

Thank you Linda and AWSA for such a beautiful award and for the wonderful recognition.

New book's blog going live!

My co-author, Renee Gray-Wilburn, and I have been working on our new blog for our new book. It is scheduled to go live tomorrow!

Please visit here: http://www.grandparentingthruobstacles.wordpress.com/

Our new book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ is due out from Pix-N-Pens in August.

If you haven't discovered it yet, please check out the Hope Tour from Write Integrity Press, which owns Pix-N-Pens. It's our own virtual book tour, and there's some exciting prizes you can win over there!

Please Like our new book's Facebook page: Grandparenting Through Obstacles on Facebook

And Follow us on Twitter: @GParentObstacle

Thank you!

Today Only! Get Dear America FREE

The FREE offer of Dear America ends today, so if you haven't already downloaded your copy, get it today here: Dear America.
Remember, if you don't have a Kindle, you don't need one! You can turn your computer, phone, or tablet into a Kindle Reader. It's safe. It's free, too. You can get that app here: Free Kindle App.

Don't miss your FREE copy of my first book, Dear America. Get it before today ends!

Get Dear America book FREE! Limited time...

Have you read my first book, Dear America: A Letter of Comfort and Hope to a Grieving Nation? Now you can have it. . . for FREE!

For a limited time, you can download the Kindle version of my first book, Dear America, for FREE.

Don't have a Kindle? Turn your computer, phone, or Pad into a Kindle Reader . . . also for FREE ! Get your free Kindle app here.

Kindle at Amazon.com is featuring my book, Dear America, for a 5-day special offer. Starting May 31, 2012, through June 4, 2012, you can download Dear America to your Kindle or other device.

Get it free now!

If you're willing, would you please write a review? Reviews need not be positive--your honest thoughts about the book are preferred. You may mention you got it Free during the special give-away for Kindle.

A little about the book:

Written just after September 11, 2001, you'll get:

• Dianne's personal story.
• Ten Things I've Learned About Getting through Grief
• Understand the Bible in Five Sentences!
• Intriguing Questions and Answers, including: How can we know whose religion is true? Who are the Muslims? Where did the religion of Islam come from? Do Muslims and Christians worship the same God? Was the Attack on America part of the "End Times"?
• Ten practical tips to reading and understanding the Bible.

Sit down with me over a cup of coffee. Hear my personal story of grief and loss. Learn what I've discovered about God and the Gospel, Islam and the Muslims, and about going on after tragedy.

Not convinced? Check out the book through Amazon's Look Inside!

Please use the Share buttons below and spread the word to your contacts. Thank you!

Get Dear America for Kindle now though June 4th.

Finalist for 2012 Golden Scroll Nonfiction Book of the Year Award!

I just learned Deliver Me is a finalist for the "2012 Golden Scroll Nonfiction Book of the Year" award!

The Golden Scrolls are awarded by the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association.

Last month Christian Small Publishers Association awarded Deliver Me "Book of the Year" in the Family/Relationships category. I'm very excited and humbled!

New book, Grandparenting through Obstacles, Facebook Page

My co-author, Renee Gray-Wilburn, and I have a new book coming out in August! It's titled Grandparenting through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ. It releases from Pix-N-Pens Publishing September 1, just in time for Grandparent's Day!

We're building a Facebook page for it. If you're a grandparent and have challenges in reaching your grandchildren for Christ, please Like the page:


Grandparenting through Obstacles Facebook Page.

At the Colorado Christian Writers Conference with Magnificent Hope

Had a great time at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. Saw Magnificent Hope there!

Visit the Hope Book Tour site to read more about my experiences at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference with Magnificent Hope.

Interview on TheWordsmithJournal.com and The Magnificent Hope Book Tour and more!

There's so much going on I can't keep up! I've been interviewed by http://www.thewordsmithjournal.com/ for Mother's Day. You can read it here: Deliver Me Interview for Mother's Day.

The Magnificent Hope Book Tour with Pix-N-Pens Publishers has begun! Read about Hope riding my motorcycle with me last Saturday here: Magnificent Hope Book Tour 2012: Biker Chick for a Day.

And I've had three online article come out recently. You can find them here:

On http://www.findinggoddaily.com/ May 9: Find God After Abortion with the Film "The Choice"

On http://www.thinkingaboutsuicide.com/ May 8: Grief and Anger

On http://www.thechristainpulse.com/ on May 5: Sign of the End Time?: Birds of Prey

New Book Contract !!!

I'm very pleased to announce that I have a new book contract!

The book Grandparenting through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ, co-authored with Renee Gray-Wilburn will be released by Pix-N-Pens Publishing in August 2012.

This is a compilation of twenty stories that address many of the challenges grandparents face today, such as long-distance grandparenting and when the kids' parents are not walking with God. We've included tips and suggestions and prayers and sidebars of grandparents in the Bible, so there's a lot in there!

We're working to open a blog and a Facebook page. Would you please Like our Facebook page? And subscribe to the blog, if you like. We're hoping to fill the blog with lots of interesting information and interviews.

Also, our publisher is sponsoring a book tour! Well, it's a virtual book tour. But we're just starting out, so please check out the Magnificent Hope Book Tour 2012. Please see the May 8 post about Hope riding on my motorcycle with me! We have  lot going on there! Magnificent Hope also has her own Facebook page. Please Like it!

I'll keep you updated as things move along with this new book! I'm very excited!

Deliver Me listed in "CBA Industry Brief"

I kinda never thought one of my books would be listed in the Christian Booksellers Association's CBA Industry Brief newsletter, but sure as shootin' there it is!

CBA Industry Brief listed the winners in all twelve categories of the Christian Small Publisher's Association's "Book of the Year" awards, including Deliver Me in the "Relationship / Family" category. Wow.

You can read the article here: "The 2012 Winning Titles of the Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year Award."

Deliver Me awarded "Book of the Year"!

Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy has just been awarded a "Book of the Year" award from Christian Small Publisher's Association!

The awards were announced yesterday on Christian Small Publisher's Association's (CSPA) web site. CSPA says, "Christian Small Publisher Book of the Year honors books produced by small publishers each year for outstanding contribution to Christian life."

The 2012 award was given in 12 categories. Deliver Me won in the "Family / Relationships" category.

"Book of the Year" award winners in each category are determined by votes. I wish to thank everyone who voted for Deliver Me!

View "The Choice" short film now!

It's here! The Choice has premiered at the 168 Film Festival! You know what that means?

That means now that the premiere is over, we can show you the film!

It's on YouTube here: The Choice short film. It will take 10 minutes of your time.

Please enjoy it. Leave a comment if you wish. "Like" it. And send a link to your social media contacts.

Our prayer is that our film will reach the people who are still struggling, who can finally see that they are not the only one who struggles, and who can find direction, help, and hope in this film.

This film is based on a true story in the book Deliver Me: Hope, Help, and Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Prenancy.

Please help us spread the word about The Choice short film. Thank you!

Finding God in Palm Sunday

Did you know when the Jews brought their lambs to the Temple for Passover, the people sang songs from Psalm 113 - 118 while the High Priest led in the lambs?

Did you know that Jesus, riding on a donkey, was entering the city of Jerusalem at that exact moment and some of the people were singing those same Psalms to Him?

That's why the Pharisees were so mad! Learn more. Read my latest article posted today on http://www.findinggoddaily.com/ here: Finding God in Palm Sunday.

Tonight! Premiere of "The Choice" short film

Do you know what today is? Today is the premiere of the short film I wrote, directed, and produced in February. The Choice is premiering at the 168 Film Festival in San Fernando, California, TONIGHT!!

Here is the 168 Film Festival schedule. If you scroll down to "Screening Four" tonight, you'll see our film, The Choice, (Team 22) is listed third. That portion of the screenings starts at 8:35 PM. All the films are a maximum of 11 minutes. Ours is 10 (9:56). At the Festival, they just run film after film after film with no break or commentary in between. So...I'm guessing The Choice will screen approximately 8:55 or 9:00 PM California time (if they're running on schedule). That's about 10:00 PM Colorado time. I hope that excites you as much as it does me!
Did you know...  This short film, The Choice is based on a true story in Deliver Me by the same title? The story is written by Chris Jackman.

Chris Jackman also wrote a song by the same title with appears on her CD "The Choice."  Her song is featured in the film.

If you're interested, you can watch The Choice movie trailer right now!

See my story on "Write His Answer" blog

Marlene Bagnull, director of the Colorado Christian Writers Conference, has posted my story over on her blog at Write His Answer.

You can read about how (and why) I started writing, how I got into screenwriting, and much more about my writing adventure and journey. I hope you enjoy my story!

Finding God Daily: In Prison after a Deadly DUI

My latest article on Finding God Daily posted March 21, 2012. Read it here: Find God in Prison after a Deadly DUI This is the story of a man who caused a DUI crash, killed someone, and went to prison for it. But through that experience, he found God.

What if you're on the other side of that story? Have you lost someone in a deadly DUI-caused crash? I have. Did you know I wrote about that in my first book, Dear America?

While you can still get Dear America in print, for its anniversary edition it is now available on Kindle.

Don't have a Kindle? You can make your laptop a Kindle for free.

Amazon Prime customers can get Dear America from Amazon's Lending Library and read it for free.

What's in Dear America?

In Dear America, one chapter presents the Gospel in five Acts, which I wrote about in my last Finding God Daily post about the Structure of Great Stories. (Or see yesterday's post directly below.)

Dear America has another chapter that gives readers "Ten Things I've Learned While Sifting through Grief." You can read that part through Amazon's "Look Inside the Book" program.

And one more thing. I'm going to be writing about those "Then Things I've Learned" about grief on a new blog called "Thinking About Suicide." This blog launched yesterday. It's brought to you by the same folks that do Finding God Daily. Please stop by and leave a comment.

Finding God Daily: Story Structure

My latest article on http://www.findinggoddaily.com/ posted March 20, 2012. Read it here:
Find God in the Structure of Great Stories.

168 Film Project -- See movie trailer for "The Choice" now!

If you were reading this blog back in February, you know I participated this year in the 168 Film Project for the second time. I'm very pleased with the film we produced this year!

We can't show you our film until after it premieres at the 168 Film Festival which March 30 - 31 in the Los Angeles area.

Unfortunately our film was not nominated for any awards. However it will still be shown at the 168 Film Festival. We are Team 22 and our film is titled The Choice.

However, we can show your the movie trailer! We just got our trailer produced and uploaded a few days ago. You can see it on my YouTube channel and on my Vimeo page. Here are the links.

The Choice movie trailer:

YouTube: http://youtu.be/MCQjvaZl0t8

Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/dianneebutts

Please "Like" it, leave a comment, and/or send a link to your Facebook, Twitter, and friends. I hope you enjoy seeing the movie trailer for The Choice.

Book Trailer on Goodreads

Are you on Goodreads yet? I joined a few years ago but never had time to really check it out. I've been doing that recently. I signed up for their Author's program and entered a lot of information today, including

I also uploaded Deliver Me's book trailer to my Goodreads Author Page.

If you're on Goodreads, send me a Friend request (and let me know you saw it on my blog so I know who you are!).

If you'd like to see my Author Page, this link might work if you're a member:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5004440.Dianne_E_Butts

Or go on Goodreads, search for me or my books (Deliver Me or Dear America), and click on my name.

When you visit, I hope you can take two minutes to view Deliver Me's book trailer on Goodreads!

Dear America now on Kindle!

Tomorrow is March 11, 2012. Ten years ago tomorrow my first book was published!

I wrote Dear America: A Letter of Comfort and Hope to a Grieving Nation in the days following September 11, 2001 and the Attacks on America. I wrote it in ten days. It was published and available six months to the day after September 11th.

With our nation grieving the loss of so many individuals, I wanted to share from my own experiences what I've learned about getting through grief and loss.

As our nation encountered an attack from radical Muslims, I wanted to share what I'd learned about Islam and the Muslim faith and how it compares to Christianity.

With so many people searching for hope and wondering about God, I wanted to tell them why I believe God exists. I wanted to share God's story - His story (history) - in a short, concise, easy-to-understand way.

And with so many people wanting to know about God and looking to the Bible, some for the very first time, I wanted to share some basic tips for beginning to read the Bible.

Dear America is only 52 pages long, but it packs a lot of information for the searching and curious, and overflows with compassion for the grieving and hopeless.

Thank God we haven't experiences another attack like we did ten years and six months ago. But Dear America still offers a lot of information and help for the grieving, the searching, the curious, and the hopeless. Who do you know who is grieving? Who do you know that is searching? They'll appreciate this book!

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Dear America, it's now available on Kindle! Find it here: Dear America on Kindle.

A quick read. A lot of information. A bundle of hope. Overflowing with compassion. Kindle edition only $3.45.

Still available in print from the Author or Amazon for $6.95 plus shipping (and tax where applicable).

Get it now: Dear America on Kindle.

Get a print copy here: Dear America in print.

Order a print copy from Dianne here: Dear America in print from Dianne.



Something Exciting RE: Deliver Me book!

Something very exciting is cooking regarding the Deliver Me book. Can't wait to share! But I just can't share it yet.

Stay tuned. I'll let you know as soon as I can...!

Our 168 Film Title: "The Choice"

Our film we made for the 168 Film Project is titled "The Choice."

Here's the Bible verse we were assigned:

As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:11-13, TNIV)

What a great verse to build a story around!

168 Film Project 2012

My second year participating in the 168 Film Project has been exciting and challenging once again. We started out very well. During our 10 days in pre-production we were assigned Romans 10:11-13 for our Bible verse.

I found a story that fit the verse that I liked and it was amazing to watch the story develop. Many people pitched in ideas that were helpful, and some ended up in the final script. We could feel the Lord richly blessing this project.

Production week started Thursday, February 16th at 11:00 am local time. We planned two days of filming. Could we really get it all filmed in two days?! Well we did. We were done filming by 3:30 Friday. The filming all went very, very well.

My editor, Zach Hubbell, had a rough cut on Saturday. Took time out to attend church Sunday morning and by Sunday afternoon we were adding the wonderful music by John Doryk.

We were amazed we'd be ready to turn in the film on Monday -- three full days ahead of schedule!

But then...don't ya know. Something glitched. When we tested the film, it wouldn't play back right. The picture was herky-jerky and the sound wasn't synced anymore. We knew it had to do with converting the film to the format required by the 168 Film Project. The problem was how to fix it.

We couldn't possibly have come this far, with the Lord so obviously blessing the project in so many ways, and then not have a film that would play to turn in, could we? The Lord would work this out. Wouldn't he? But we know there are no such guarantees.

It was a good thing we were so far ahead of schedule because it took two full days to find a solution and get it implemented. But in the end we triumphed (Thank you Jesus!) and our film went to FedEx a full 17 hours before turn-in deadline of today at 11:00 am.

I think we made a fine film, one I will be proud to show. I'm very proud of every member of my Film Team and I cannot say thank you enough to each and every one of them.
 
My prayer is that God will be glorified in what we have produced this week. 
 
(Nope, sorry. You can't see it until after judging is completed.)

More later...

Book of the Year voting still going!

We're making headway! I believe with your help Deliver Me can win the Book of the Year award.

If you haven't yet, will you please post a note to your Facebook? And/or Google +?

Here's a link to the Official Ballot:

http://www.christianpublishers.net/12votes/

The sponsor of this award is the Christian Small Publishers Association. The publisher of Deliver Me, Connections Press, is a member of CSPA.

You can find more information about the book here: http://www.delivermebook.com/. Thank you for your Vote! Thank you for your help and support.

Finished Principal Photography - 168 Film Project

Yesterday morning our early shoot went really well. Lots of actors and extras to direct, but we got the job done and the film we got is very good based on what I've seen so far. We finished pretty much on time, I think. (Forgot to look at the clock!) We let almost everyone go and finished shooting the last scene at 20 minutes after 9:00 when the store opened. But the Christian bookstore owner, which was our location for the shoot, said the store doesn't get busy right away so it would probably be okay if we ran over a little on time. So I think it was good.

Had a few hours break before we could get into the last location, but when we did we got the job done. Again, I forgot to look a the clock! I'll have to ask someone, but I think we finished on time and let our actors go.

The last scene that we shot was pretty amazing with the actress walking down the hallway into growing darkness -- which was great both visually and symbolically considering the context.

We got home and started post production right away until late. Will continue post production today. The editor has lots to do and so do I--typing up the credits, a few more releases, etc. Better get to it.

"The Choice" 168 Film Project

For ten days we've been preparing to film our 168 Film Project. Today we started filming -- starting at 11:00 AM local time. What an amazing day!

Amazing acting. Great filming. Awesome crew.

Starting in again early tomorrow. What an amazing journey.

VOTE for Deliver Me! (And ask your friends?)

Voting is still open at the Christian Small Publisher 2012 Book of the Year Award!

The votes are coming in, but I still need your help if Deliver Me is going to win this wonderful award. Would you please Tweet and tell your friends to vote for Deliver Me? There are Share Buttons at the bottom of this post for your convenience.

Here's a short link to the Official Ballot:

http://www.christianpublishers.net/12votes/

Find Deliver Me in the category for Nonfiction - Relationships / Family.

Anyone can read reviews of Deliver Me on it's Amazon page. Here's a short link to that page that you can send out if you wish:

http://amzn.to/DeliverMeBook

Thank you for your support of Deliver Me. By forwarding this information you are helping get Deliver Me into the hands of those who need God's help and guidance, and perhaps also His compassionate forgiveness. God's love for those who are in, or have in their past, an unplanned pregnancy clearly shines through the true stories in Deliver Me.