Snow Angel - Flying Off the Shelves!
I just received word from the lovely Julie over at B&H that Snow Angel has already sold out the first print run (and it's not even the street date of September 1st yet!). I know that my local Borders and Barnes & Noble stores sold out in a few days (thanks family and friends!!). Amazon showed it had "3 copies left" and then "1 copy left" and then "on order" for a few days. Now, I believe they have them back in stock!

Speaking of Amazon, have you seen that prolific reviewer Harriet Klausner? I was hoping that she would review Snow Angel, and I found today that she had! http://harrietklausner.wwwi.com/review/snow_angel_carie
Thank you Harriet!!

It's a Bird... It's a Plane... It's a Snow Angel!...

Okay, it sometimes seems I've been waiting for this moment my whole life. To walk in a local bookstore and see my book displayed? Wow! But really, when I was a girl, I didn't even dream that I would ever be a writer.

There was a girl on my bus. She was blond and very pretty and popular. And while she didn’t really talk to me much (I was the weird preacher’s daughter) we shared in common the fact that we both read voraciously. I would watch her out of the corner of my eye from those high backed seats, reading some novel, admiring her new clothes, her perfectly straight, long blond hair, her confidence. I don’t exactly remember if she told me or I heard from the grapevine, but I knew that she wanted to be an author. The thought that I might be an author never crossed my mind. Those things were for important, special people and I was not that. I thought that when I grew up that I would "do hair" like my mom, or go into "business" like my first boyfriend said I should do. I couldn’t imagine anything bigger…

But there was always something in me that wanted to impact the world for Christ. My parents laid down their lives to present the gospel - they still do. And I think, more than anything else, it was that example (they weren't perfect!!) but it was that heart for the kingdom of God that lead me to writing. And so, when yesterday I walked into a Borders Book Store and saw my book for the first time sitting on a table IN THE FRONT - I started shaking.

We went to my brother's house an hour later for my nephew's birthday party, and I was still shaking. I am realizing that this isn't my "dream come true" because I never would have dared dream it. He just did it. His purpose. His will. His vision. For His glory.

And in that moment of discovering HIM, I can only fall to my knees and say . . . I am so unworthy, I am so unworthy. (And human, cause yes, I kinda, sorta, hope that that beautiful girl will visit Borders, recognize my name, and pick up a story called Snow Angel. ;)

Shoes and Flowers and a Few of my Favorite Things...

Okay, if you know me at all, you know that I LOVE beauty.

I'm the kind of girl that compliments everyone around me about something. To some people, this may seem as some kind of false flatery, some brown-nosing effort . . . but NO! Let me assure you that (if I've ever complimented you!) I SEE YOUR BEAUTY!!

I see it everywhere: In a friend's smile, the color of their lipstick, the way their whole face lights up with laughter, eyes tearing, or a classy outfit, the texture of the fabric, the put-together accessories, the color that shows off a face. Your home decor, how you have carefully arranged the mantle, the candlesticks and the paintings and the color of the walls. I notice these things in seconds of entering a room. I sense the mood you've created and I can't help but comment on it.

I love a toddler's chubby thighs, the way their stomachs protroud and hang out without a care in the world. Or a plate of artfully arranged food (that I can't wait to destroy to eat!) but pause to memorize its elegant setting. The sunset that I pull my Wii playing boys to the window and say, "See! Do you see that?"

Flowers: The texture and rich color of a rose or the delicate petals of a daisy, the feel of a straw-flower agasint my finger tips as I water it.

I love a phrase, whether spoken or written, that leaves me agast with glee, or a caught moment when some music is playing and I catch my husband's eyes. I love a sleek car, a hot-rod, my eyes following and admiring as it takes the curve ahead of us. How about a wedding, there is nothing like a bride's smile - a groom's pride. Or a beauty of another kind, the sad, pressed down, melting of a funeral.

Then, there's the poem, encompassing it all. And SONG . . . especially song. The whole world loves a song.

And then, there is paintings . . . paintings that catch and hold for us a moment of caught time.

And so, please allow me to introduce you to Elena Feliciano . . . one of my favorite artists . . . an artist of beauty.

You can find her complete porfolio at: http://www.ebsqart.com/Artists/cmd_8896_profile_portfolio__1_1_G.htm

Snow Angel Now Available on Amazon!

When Noah Wesley heard the faint sound outside the door of his remote Alaskan mountain cabin during a violent nighttime blizzard, it was no less than the voice of God that urged him to take a closer look, soon to discover his snow angel.

Unconscious and more than half frozen to death, her name, as Noah would later learn after boldly saving her life, was Elizabeth, a beautiful young woman, fragile yet fierce, and intent on discovering gold like so many others in that region during the late 1800s.

But why Elizabeth was so drawn to the gold, and why she would chase it even through a pounding storm that no man would dare face, was a secret to be shared with no one else, not even at the invitation of Noah's d deep blue trusting eyes. First time novelist Jamie Carie pens a can't-put-down debut in Snow Angel, a masterfully romantic story wherein cold and lonely hearts risk everything to be forever warmed.

Ha! After my rant about selling God, I find out that Snow Angel is available on Amazon early (was supposed to be September 1st)! My husband keeps telling me to make the announcement on my blog and to tell all my friends, and I'm like, but I just complained about harassing people to buy Christian products! Oh well, God's timing is perfect even if I can't always figure Him out! LOL!

So please consider placing an order on Amazon. I hope it truly blesses many people!!

Selling God
As I dive into the marketing process for Snow Angel, sometimes I pause . . . am I just trying to sell God to people?
I turn on Christian radio and Christian TV and I feel . . . harassed.
I walk out to the mailbox to get my mail and there is something from this person and that, all Christians, all with great messages, but always asking for some investment in their ministry. Buy this CD, buy this book, buy this teaching tape, sign up for my newsletter, look at my catalog, BUY THIS... BUY THIS . . . BUY THIS . . . and CHANGE YOUR LIFE . . . you will be okay if you will only BUY THIS!

Then I think of Mother Theresa - a life spilled out. I heard a story about her. There was this missionary group of young people from the states visiting Calcutta. They ministered to the poor. They visited the sick. They hoped to see Mother Theresa. But they didn't. And then, on the way home in the airport they suddenly, inexplicably ran into her. "Oh, Mother Theresa. We wanted to meet you! We've been here ministering to the poor and sick. We're so happy to meet you!"
She nodded and smiled at them, her face wreathed in wrinkles.
Then they asked, "Tell us! What can we do to help you in your work?"
They waited breathlessly for her answer, knowing that she would say something to spur them on for the years to come.
"Stay." She said simply.
I imagine that she saw the look of shock on their young, American faces and then smiled a small smile and turned away. I can see her turning back and waving at them, saying goodbye. She'd seen that face many, many times before and it was no surprise.
I can't imagine that I would have stayed....
Then I think of JESUS . . . he said something similair. "Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it." (Mark 8:34-35, NIV)

I cringe and grieve and wrestle with it all.

I have to face it.

God may care less if I reach multitudes through my books then I hand out water to the few in my circle to give water to - my family, my friends and neighbors and even strangers that he puts in my path. I know God gave me this gift of writing to impact a world, but what if I neglect MY world. I am so weak and grasping for answers sometimes. There's so much to read and hear and do . . .
I need You. I need You. Fill me Lord. I need You.
This is the best prayer I have for today.
Maybe tomorrow I will be more eloquent, more true to Your word and filled with faith.
But today is just an ordinary day of lack and need.

Big Book Giveaway!

Any day now, I will recieve a big box of beautiful books! I can hardly wait to open it and get my hands on the final copy of Snow Angel. It's been so long in coming . . .

To celebrate, I would like to give away five free copies! To be included in the drawing, just drop me a comment to this blog entry with your name and email address (so I can notify you if you win!) All I ask in return is that you leave a review on Amazon, CBD, B&H's site or your own blog. Thanks and Good Luck!

First Interview!
Whoo-hoo!

A special thanks to Gina Holmes for giving me my first author interview! You can visit her blog at http://noveljourney.blogspot.com/ where the good folks at Novel Journey cover all the latest and greatest in the Christian book industry. Gina has lots of coverage on ICRS and the Christy Awards too. (I hear they call her the Barbara Walters of the CBA!)

Please comment on the interview on her site!

Peace,

Jamie

Simply Amazing Video . . .