Beloved Readers,

I’m so excited to let you know that there are many changes coming to my website and how I connect with my reader friends. If you drop by my site, you may notice a few changes already, but most will slowly be unveiled over the next few months.

You may be thinking, Why is she slowly unveiling them? Good question. It’s not a marketing ploy. I hate those! It’s because many of the ways I want to stay connected with you are only in the vision and planning stages, and I have a book tour that must be completed before I can do anything else. But I believe my plans of handling my site differently will give you and me more opportunity to enjoy a few moments together.

I’d love to hear your thoughts as I progress. Tell me what you like and what else you’d like to see. I learn a lot from my reader friends, and much of what I’ve learned over the last few years is poured into my newest novel—The Harvest of Grace. I think it’s a story you will love. Readers honor me with their time, and I work hard to give a story worthy of that gift.

One new thing in this novel is it has a page in the front of the book that is “The story so far . . .” So if it’s been a little while since you read books one and two in the Ada’s House series, The Hope of Refuge and The Bridge of Peace, I think you’ll appreciate this addition. And for those who love character charts, you’ll find that in the back of the book.

I hope you’ll take a moment today to absorb the beauty in your life because it’s all around you even when life seems to be falling apart. Research specifies that reading novels does more than just entertain or refresh; it increases the reader’s empathy and understanding for real-life people and circumstances. It offers you a chance to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.

Kumm, step into Sylvia Fisher’s shoes in The Harvest of Grace.

Cindy

Book News

To read the first chapter, click here.

The Harvest of Grace is the final book in the Ada’s House series and it hits bookstore shelves Tuesday, August 9. For a limited time, the first book in the series, The Hope of Refuge, is available on e-readers like Kindle and Nook for $1.99! I was told the sale ends August 12, so share this good news with all the e-book lovers in your life.

Cindy's Itinerary

It’s almost time for me to leave for another book tour,
and I’m looking forward to meeting reader friends!

The Harvest of Grace Book Tour
August 9-19, 2011

Tuesday, August 9 (Release Day!), 4:00-5:00 p.m.
Memphis East LifeWay Christian Store
The Commons
8025 Giacosa Place
Memphis, TN 38133
Phone: 901-373-4900
~
Wednesday, August 10, 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Christian Book Outlet
670 Elsinger Blvd.
Conway, AR 72032
Phone: 501-513-2226
~
Wednesday, August 10, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Barnes & Noble
11500 Financial Center Pkwy.
Little Rock, AR 72211
Phone: 501-954-7646
~
Thursday, August 11, 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Mardel
9725 E. 71st St.
Tulsa, OK 74133
Phone: 918-254-1071
~
Friday, August 12, 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Mardel
4848 NW Expressway
Oklahoma City, OK 73132
Phone: 405-773-1717
~
Saturday, August 13, 1:00-2:00 p.m.
Topeka LifeWay Christian Store
2121 SW Fairlawn Plaza Drive
Topeka, KS 66614
Phone: 785-228-2858
~
Sunday, August 14, 3:00-4:00 p.m.
Barnes & Noble
420 W 47th Street
Kansas City, MO 64112
Phone: 816-753-1313
~
Monday, August 10, 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Barnes & Noble
113 West County Center
Des Peres, MO 63131
Phone: 314-835-9980
~
Tuesday, August 16, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Springfield LifeWay Christian Store
Primrose Marketplace
3362 South Glenstone Avenue
Springfield, MO 65804
Phone: 417-886-0911
~
Wednesday, August 17,11:00 a.m. to noon
Christian Gift Outlet
300 Tanger Blvd, Suite 101B
Branson, MO 65616
Phone: 417-348-0841
~
Wednesday, August 17,4:30-5:30 p.m.
Christian Book Outlet
1428C Hwy 62-65 N
Harrison, AR 72601
Phone: 870-741-2600
~
Thursday, August 18, 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Christian Book Outlet
4505 W. Walnut, Suite 1
Rogers, AR 72756
Phone: 479-936-7777
~
Friday, August 19, 6:00-7:00 p.m.
LifeWay
Turtle Creek
3009 East Highland Dr., Suite D
Jonesboro, AR 72401
Phone: 870-972-0606

If anything is added to this list while we're traveling,
you can find the updates on my website's Events page.

Amish Connection

One sunny spring day, my husband and I were welcomed into the home of an Old Order Amish woman. Her old brick farmhouse was filled with her people. They talked among themselves in their “native” language, Pennsylvania Dutch, but when they spoke to us, they used English.

The home was built in the early eighteen hundreds, and in its long history, electricity had never been installed. One cookstove burned wood and was used mostly in the cool months. The other stove ran on natural gas, the propane tank sitting in the backyard.

A pleasant May breeze flowed through the open kitchen window, making the broad, green leaves on the trees outside dance; yellow sunlight splashed about the room, playing a game of tag with the shadows. The sweet aroma of freshly baked cookies filled the air, but an earthy smell passed through occasionally, bringing in the scent of the freshly tilled garden. Looking out the window, I could see horses grazing, patiently waiting for their owners to take them home.

An elderly Amish man approached me, one I’d been getting to know for several years over a number of visits to his community. He’d seemed a bit shy in the past, perhaps leery of this Englischer woman who writes stories about his culture. This time he wanted to talk. He began telling me of his family roots, the long journey his ancestors endured to break free of the persecution happening in their home country. He shared about the first Plain folks to arrive in America in the early seventeen hundreds and many fascinating historical highlights that his people had passed down generation after generation. Then he told stories he had witnessed firsthand, and that led to talking about my favorite subject—the struggles of Amish young people in the twenty-first century.

Ideas for new stories churned within me and characters started to form.  When a novel idea sparks it’s always exciting, but I was unsure if he’d mind our conversation becoming book fodder. With a friendship at that tender stage, I didn’t feel comfortable asking permission.

His daughter-in-law pulled a pan of homemade chocolate-chip cookies out of the oven. She loaded up a plate with the baked goodies and slid the pan into the sink. My gentleman friend had become caught up in another conversation, one I couldn’t understand a word of, so I went to the sink to wash some dishes. That’s one thing in an Amish household that always needs doing, and I could do it without instructions from my hosts.

A few of the Amish women asked me questions and we began talking about things we had in common—attending church, coping with teenaged children, and the joys of trusting God. Could I trust Him to remove the story ideas that were begging for me to write them? Or was it possible He’d open the doors to allow me to use them? A writer is always tempted to borrow from conversations or observations, but integrity dictates that private conversations remain private.

While I passed a clean dish to an Amish woman to dry and put away, my elderly Old Order Amish friend came alongside me again. He looked out of place, having left the circle of men and woven through the crowd of women gathered near the sink.
Thinking he wanted something out of the cabinet, I asked, “May I get you a glass or a fresh plate?”

He shrugged. “I suppose so.”

Something appeared to be on his mind. He was the patriarch of this gathering, honored and distinguished by everyone. I was an outsider, a fact I couldn’t forget no matter how kind everyone was. I pulled a clean glass from the cabinet and with his permission, filled it with ice water for him. After I passed the glass to him, I returned to washing dishes.

“Excuse me.”

When I turned back to him, he asked if I thought I could use any part of our conversation while writing a book. My heart thumped wildly at the gift he was offering me. Did he understand what he’d just done for me…and for you? His smile and nod communicated that he fully understood.
He said he trusted me, and I assured him I’d do my best to nurture the seeds he had planted in my imagination. Could I do them justice? But I warned him, giving him an out if he wanted it, that some people might not like my interpretation. After all, fiction is really an author’s interpretation of life.

He told me, “Trust God.”

I felt overwhelmed and blessed.

Three book ideas came from our conversation. I shared the first story in The Hope of Refuge and another in the second Ada’s House novel, The Bridge of Peace. But the events closest to this man’s heart, the ones that would be the hardest to portray, were the ones that had affected him and the community of Amish farmers of which he was a part. Those unforgettable events pointed him toward perseverance, hope, and an unbending trust in his heavenly Father. That’s the story you’ll find in The Harvest of Grace.

Recipes from the Esh Family Cookbook

Back by popular demand, a story and a recipe:

While my daughter-in-law Erin and I were putting the newsletter together, she looked through the Esh Family Cookbook for a recipe to share with you, and she discovered this: “Aunt Betty’s Rivel Soup, submitted by David B. Esh. I don’t have the recipe. Ask Aunt Betty!”

After we stopped laughing, she asked me if I thought I could find Aunt Betty. I said I’d try.

I turned to my Amish friend Miriam to solve this mystery. She also found that entry to be quite amusing. A month or so after I contacted her with the problem, she wrote to me:

Cindy, I saw Aunt Betty at an auction recently; she sat right in front of me. :) So I got my chance to ask for the soup recipe.

Love, Miriam

Aunt Betty’s Rivel Soup

Melt and brown butter, add and heat milk. In a separate bowl, take flour and mix in egg yolk with fork until crumbly. A little at a time, add the flour and egg yolk mixture to the heated milk and butter. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cover with a lid. Turn off heat and let set a few minutes.

Contest

Last issue, the readers of my newsletter had the chance to win one of two autographed copies of The Harvest of Grace. The winners are Barbara Beers and Weezie!

For this newsletter contest, two people will have a chance to win an autographed copy of The Christmas Singing. The contest will run until a few days before next newsletter is sent out.

Christmas Eve has always been special to cake decorator Mattie Eash, who was born on the wondrous holiday. Yet the season lost its appeal three years ago, when her childhood sweetheart abruptly ended their relationship on Christmas. Mattie moved to Ohio, pursued her dreams of running a cake shop, and gave her heart to someone new. Someone who wouldn’t break her heart.

But an unforeseen setback forces her home and into painful proximity to Gideon. Will learning the truth behind his rejection restore her Christmas joy—or open the door to even deeper heartbreak?

Here’s how to enter. (Please follow these steps carefully to prevent your entry from being disqualified.)

1. Send a blank e-mail. (I won’t open them, so don’t send a message.)
   
2. Place the words “Newsletter Contest” in the subject line.
   
3. Send to cindy@cindywoodsmall.com.
   
4. Only one entry per person/e-mail address, please.

This contest is open to residents of the continental United States and Canada.