October 4 Author of Prophecy book Event at The Lighthouse in La Junta, Colorado

It's not yet Halloween, so dare I mention Christmas? I know how we dislike Christmas coming earlier and earlier each year to stores and retailers. However if you are in leadership -- whether in a church, a Bible study, or simply your family -- and need to think ahead to figure out how to make Christmas special, and how to keep Christ in Christmas, then now is the perfect time to discover a book that will do just that. That's because you'll have time to read it early and determine if it's the right book for a pre-Christmas Bible study with friends or a daily family devotion throughout the Advent season to keep you centered on Christ.

I will be at The Lighthouse in La Junta, Colorado, tomorrow (Friday, October 4, 2013) from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm featuring my Christmas book, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus.

Featured book at this Author Event
$14.99

Each of the 35 short chapter addresses a prophecy that was fulfilled in the events surrounding the birth of Jesus. In each chapter you'll find where in the Bible the prophecy was first written or spoken. You'll also discover when the prophecy was given, including the date if possible, then who spoke it, and the context of the prophecy.

Each prophecy is then matched with the record of where in the Bible, when, and how that prophecy was fulfilled in the events surrounding the birth of Jesus.

Here's how the book is organized:

At the beginning of each chapter you'll find:

• a Key Verse for the chapter that highlights the prophecy.
• Facts about that prophecy: including where it is found, who wrote or spoke it, the date if possible, and the context it was written or spoken in, meaning what was happening at the time this was written and why was it written?
• A Bible reading telling you where to go in your own Bible to read the verses we’re talking about in this chapter.

The body of each chapter discusses what I’ve discovered and learned about that prophecy.

At the end of every chapter you'll find:

• Three or more discussion questions to help you or your group apply it to their lives.
• A Final Thought.
• A suggested prayer.
• And For more, read – additional Bible verses on related topics for further, optional study.

Travel back in time and rediscover the prophecies fulfilled in the birth of Jesus. Your future Christmases will never be the same.

SPECIAL NOTE:

Our prayers are with the Dale and Susie Muth family at this time. Praying for Dale's recovery from his serious injuries. Praying for their children and family and friends.

Susie was the children's leader at Bible Study Fellowship International (BSF) in La Junta, Colorado, for many years. I met her when we were in the leaders' group together. I have to smile as I try to imagine all the little lives she impacted during those years as she taught so many little ones about Jesus. Surely heaven will be different because of her dedicated work through BSF. And we will miss her here.

Should the funeral for Susie Muth take place on Friday October 4 (which at the time of this writing it appears it will not), please know we will close The Lighthouse store and the Author Event to attend those services. Thank you for your understanding.

 

The Lighthouse Christian bookstore

215 Colorado Avenue

La Junta, Colorado 81050

719-384-9660

 

  

Campaign to get into the International Christian Retail Show!

I have a great opportunity to take my three most-recent books to the International Christian Retail Show. But I need help to get in the door!

The International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) is a closed trade show (meaning not open to the public). It is a trade show where book publishers and other companies that create products to be sold in, or otherwise used for, Christian retail outlets show their wares to Christian retailers, such as Christian bookstores. This is done primarily through half-hour book signings where authors sign and give away the featured book. (No sales allowed.)

Almost all the the major Christian publishers attend.

My three most-recent books have been published by Pix-N-Pens Publishing (PNP), which is a small publisher that opened only two years ago in 2011. Owned by Tracy Ruckman, PNP has a sister publishing company called Write Integrity Press (WIP).

Because these two publishing companies are small and new, they do not have big budgets to pay all the expenses required to take part in this trade show, we're asking for you help.

What are the expenses?

For a publisher to hold a book signing at the International Christian Retail Show, there are several requirements:

• Each author entering the show must have a badge to get in. There are five authors going, besides Tracy and possibly other helpers.
• Fees for renting booth space.
• Must provide a minimum of 60 of each book featured to be given away (not sold). This means not only the cost of the books but the shipping to get them there. Multiply this times five authors. Multiplies more if the author is representing more that one book. I will be representing three!

As you can see, it cots a pretty penny to get this all done.

Are you raising money to pay for the authors' trips?

No. Each of the five authors and Tracy are all paying their own travel expenses to get there, including their travel, hotel, and meals. The money we are raising is only to pay for the requirements to hold our book signings at the show.

Where do I contribute?

We've set up a fundraising campaign over at FaithFunder.com called Meet Us in St. Louis 2013.

There we have a video that runs about 4 minutes. It made me laugh out loud! That's me there, in the first photo and the last photo and a few more in between.

Be sure to check out the list of incentives down the right side of the page. For as little as $5 you can get a digital book of your choice. For $10 you can get a print book, a real bargain since most of our books are more and this also includes shipping! If you'd like to donate a little more, you can get critiques of a large chunk of your novel or several pages of your screenplay (by yours truly). You can get 12 copies of a book for your Book Club plus a visit from the author via Skype. If you're in the St. Louis area during ICRS in June, we can do dinner. There's even a gift basket from Bolivia! There's much more, so please take a list.

Who all is going?

All the authors of Pix-N-Pens and Write Integrity Press were invited to go. Five responded. Besides me, the others are:

• Fay Lamb, author of Stalking Willow and Charisse (The Ties that Bind Series)
• Vicki Tiede, author of Parenting on Your Knees: Prayers and Practical Guidance for the Preschool Years
• Peggy Cunningham, author of the new children's book Really Rare Rabbits (children's series) and contributor to Grandparenting Through Obstacles.
• Marie Wells Coutu, author of For Such a Moment (Mended Vessels Series)

Which books are you representing, Dianne?

I will be signing my three most recent books (assuming we get funded and can get all the books there). They are:

• Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ. Coauthored with Renee Gray-Wilburn, this book just won "Book of the Year" in the Family / Relationships category from the Christian Small Publishers Association.
• Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus (November 2012)
• Prophecies Fulfilled in the Death & Resurrection of Jesus (April 2013)

Finally...

Please know I'm very grateful to every person who donates. And if you can't or don't want to, believe me I understand. I hate asking for money! I only am asking this time because we can't afford to do this on our own and so we need a little help.

So if you'd like to be part of getting us into the International Christian Retail Show in St. Louis, June 23 - 26, or if you just want one of the great incentives, please visit Meet Us in St. Louis 2013. But hurry, there's only a few days left. The fundraiser closes Saturday!

Thank you so very, very much.

"Books of Hope" Nonfiction Contest Winner!

I'm please to announce I've won the non-fiction category in Pix-N-Pens Publishing's "Books of Hope" contest!

In 2012, Pix-N-Pens Publishing, the same company that published my book co-authored with Renee Gray-Wilburn Grandparenting Through Obstacles, held a contest to search for manuscripts to publish. Early on, publisher Tracy Ruckman said that she had noted something disturbing in the faces of people she saw everywhere: hopelessness. She wondered what she could do. So she sponsored the contest to look for books on hope to publish in order to take hope in Jesus Christ to the hopeless.

The contest was announced in May. Pix-N-Pens and its sister publisher, Write Integrity Press, wanted entries in both fiction and nonfiction. They also wanted stand-alone books and books in series of three.

I wanted to enter the contest, but I wasn't sure what to enter. I didn't have anything that fit the "hope" theme in the works. So I did what I always try to do with my writing: I went to see what the Bible had to say. I turned in my concordance and started looking at how many times the word "hope" was used in the Bible. I found about fifty uses of the word in the New Testament, 31 in the Psalms, 18 in Job, and interestingly only 12 elsewhere in the Old Testament.

I thought I could write a brief chapter or devotional-style entry on each occurrence and so that's the idea I pitched to the contest in the 3-book series nonfiction category.

Finalists were announced in June. Turns out there were far more entries for fiction that for nonfiction books (lucky for me!). Everyone wants to write fiction! But nonfiction sells a lot more. When people need help, they reach for nonfiction.

My idea was a nonfiction finalist. The winners of the contest were announced on January 23, 2013. You can read the official announcement here: "2012 Books of Hope Nonfiction Winner" Announced. Scroll down for the winners of the fiction categories. I see some really exciting books there that I'm looking forward to reading!

My first book in the "Days of Hope" series will be 50 Days of Hope from the New Testament.

When will it release? That has yet to be determined. Right now Pix-N-Pens has me very busy with two other series I'm writing for them.

The second book in my "Prophecies Fulfilled" series, titled Prophecies Fulfilled in the Death & Resurrection of Jesus, releases next month just in time for Easter. Please watch this blog for the soon-release of the book's cover! Very exciting!

The first book in that series, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus, released for Christmas 2012 and is available now. Like Grandparenting Through Obstacles, it's a great resource for individual use or group study.

I'm also contracted for a 3-book series of fiction, the "Springs Eternal" series starting with Hope's Diner which is scheduled to release later this year.

My thanks to Pix-N-Pens Publishing (PNP) and Write Integrity Press (WIP) for the opportunities to write for them and for their heart for reaching people with the hope that is in Jesus Christ.

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!

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.

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.