Fabulous Friday Feature-Leslie Gould-Connections

Today we welcome author:

Leslie Gould

A commenter will win a copy of
Leslie's book:
Amish Sweethearts

Scroll down to see how.

Mary here. I'm so happy to welcome Leslie Gould today. This talented woman cared for children, ran her home, and went to grad school, all at the same time. Talk about a tight schedule!  I don't want to steal her thunder so without further ado...here is what Leslie said when I asked her: how has God led you on your writing journey. Come, be inspired: 

Connections Made By God

My first three novels were published in 2003, 2005, and 2006. They received good reviews and one, Beyond the Blue, won the Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Inspirational Book of the Year (2006) Award, but none of them were best sellers—or even stellar sellers, lol. I wasn’t sure if I would publish any more novels, honestly, and after a lot of prayer I decided to go to graduate school and get my masters in fine arts in creative writing. If I couldn’t write to publish, I’d keep writing anyway—and plan to make a career out of teaching.

With four kids still living at home, I started grad school at Portland State University. To my surprise, I did end up writing to publish throughout my graduate years, along with writing for my courses. My agent, Chip MacGregor, connected me to Guideposts to do write-for-hire novels. In all, I worked on three different series with a variety of other authors and wrote eight novels altogether. I learned to collaborate, write more efficiently, and to keep trusting God with my writing.

Soon after I graduated, Chip connected me with author Mindy Starns Clark. We began collaborating on an Amish series, The Women of Lancaster County, and the first one, The Amish Midwife, hit the #1 bestseller spot and won a Christy Award. Since then I’ve written six more Amish novels on my own, including my latest, Amish Sweethearts, which just released. And, currently, Mindy and I are writing a new series, Cousins of the Dove. The first, My Brother’s Crown, released last fall.

God led me to be flexible in my writing, and I’m so glad I followed his direction. I love visiting Amish families and writing about them. I’ve also included many of my own life interests and experiences into the stories—from adoption to midwifery to the military. And I delight in the research I do for my other projects too. I learn something new every single day.

A double blessing is that even though I write fulltime, I also teach one college writing class per semester. God has truly given me the desires of my heart.

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Leslie's family

Leslie Gould is the #1 bestselling and Christy Award winning author of twenty-two novels. She has a MFA from Portland State University and teaches writing at Warner Pacific College. Leslie enjoys traveling, hiking, and history. She and her husband, Peter are the revolving-door parents of four children and three cats. 

Leslie loves to connect with readers. 
You can find her at her:

  

Website 

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Amish Sweethearts

They've been best friends for years, but as high school ends, Zane Beck can't help but look at his Amish neighbor, Lila Lehman, with different eyes. Her controlling father sees only one future for Lila, though, and arranges for her to be courted by an upstanding young Amish man. When Zane sees the two together, his plans for the future crumble, and he impulsively enlists in the Army, following in his father's footsteps.


However, the passing of years and the distance between them isn't enough to halt their now hidden feelings for each other. If being together used to be difficult, it's now impossible, especially with the Amish opposed to war. Zane's service takes a dramatic turn when he's sent to Afghanistan. Being on the front line and the reality of taking a life has him questioning whether he can continue to serve or not. But all choices have consequences--both his and hers. With Lila preparing to marry another, will these one-time sweethearts ever find the life together that they both still long for?.

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Enter the contest to win a copy of 
Leslie Gould's book:

Amish Sweethearts

Here is how:

1. Leave a comment (and email address)

2. AND sign up to receive my newsletter -in the right column

    (subscribers to Mary Vee's newsletter will receive a special gift)

    AND/OR sign up to receive posts by email if you aren't already

Thank you, Leslie, for joining us this weekend!

We enjoy chatting with you, Reader, and look forward to reading your comments and questions. Or at least your hi, hello, or hey.

Thanks for stopping by!

Don't forget to comment!