WInners, prizes and COMEBACK COWBOY, a romance mystery!
I hope you’ve been having a good summer. Can you believe we’re approaching the end of July already?
Just a quick heads-up: COMEBACK COWBOY, a full-length clean & wholesome novel is now FREE if you use Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited, or just $3.99 to buy. A quick summary:
Can bullrider Jake Landers undo the biggest mistake of his life?
Rodeo cowboys and clowns are often close—cheering each other on, helping each other throughout the rodeo circuit. But Jake was badly injured last year and forced to retire, and now he’ll lose touch with the folks who’ve become his second family.
Buying a faltering rodeo company is his ticket back into the life he loves. The one person who can help him succeed is the woman he stood up at the altar ten years before. If she’ll agree…and if dark secrets from the past don’t tear them apart once more. Will they ever have a second chance at love?
To learn more about Comeback Cowboy, CLICK HERE!
JUNE WINNERS: Thanks to all of you who replied to my question in the June newsletter, which was “What are some of your favorite summer memories?” All of the replies were wonderful! The winners:
Mary S: My favorite memories involve my birthday. I was born on July 3, so we usually celebrated on July 4th with a family cookout. It was always so much fun. I have a rather small family, so it wasn’t all that big, but it was small. And a few years ago I visited my daughter and her husband on my birthday and that year the town they live near had fireworks on July 3. My daughter said she planned it just for me. Summer is just fun times.
Janine: Some of my favorite summer memories include hanging out with my friends. Summers in Texas are very hot, so we used to enjoy doing things after the sun set. One thing I looked forward to was swimming in the creek to cool down. Now that I am older, I know it wasn’t very smart with snakes in the water. Luckily, we never encountered any when we were out for a swim.
Debra J.P.: Some of my favorite childhood memories were going to West Virginia every summer. The home place where my Mom was born and raised still stands. We would go down the last two weeks of August every year along with most of my Mom’s family. We would all be together. There would be campers as well as some would stay in hotel rooms in a nearby town. We would play in the creek across the road as well as visit family we only get to see once a year. I learned to fish as a child in West Virginia. Thank you for the opportunity.
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The current winners can select any title from my 2020 clean & wholesome Coupled by Christmas novella series. To read about the six titles CLICK HERE to decide on your choice, then let me know via the Contact Button on my website (www.roxannerustand.com) so I can arrange to send your prize!
NOW, FOR TWO NEW QUESTIONS TO ANSWER IN JULY:
1. Series books: Do you like reading series of connected books? Do you want them all to be very closely connected, or do you prefer that the books can also be read as “stand alone” titles without needing to read the previous book first? Do you have any pet peeves regarding books published in a series?
2. So far, I have included a family favorite recipe in each newsletter, but is this something you like? Or should I skip it? What do you enjoy most when you read author newsletters?
Just click below to leave answers in the comment space. July winners will receive a free copy of ONE MORE DANCE, or ONE MORE WISH, the first two books in my Northern Pines series. Three more books in the series will be out this fall!.
**Note: if you send answers to my questions of the month, be sure to check the next month’s newsletter to see if you are a winner!
HERE IS A FAMILY FAVORITE RECIPE:
STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE
Adapted from an old New Orleans’ cookbook
SHORTCAKES (makes twelve)
2 cups AP flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 cup butter (regular. Not unsalted)
2/3 cup milk
Mix dry ingredients. Cut in butter until it resembles corn meal.
Stir in milk just until dough holds together. Bake at 400 degrees until browned.
***NOTE: Instead of rolling out, I drop the biscuits to achieve a nice crunchy texture on top, and before baking I sprinkle heavily with sparkling or sanding (coarse) sugar for a nice glittery top.
STRAWBERRY MIXTURE
4 cups hulled, washed strawberries 6 Tbsp Splenda (could sub sugar) 2 Tbsp Grand Marnier
Puree 1/3 cup of the strawberries with the Grand Marnier and sugar or Splenda. Mix into remaining strawberries. Let sit at least 30 minutes.
WHIPPED CREAM
2 cups heavy cream
6 Tbsp white corn syrup (for more stability)
2 tsp vanilla extract
Extra sweetener to taste, if needed
ASSEMBLY
Split biscuits in half. Dust top half with powdered sugar.
Put bottom half on a plate and top with strawberries plus a big mound of whipped cream. A scattering of a few blueberries can add another pop of color. Garnish with fresh mint leaves.
THREE ONLINE BOOKFAIRS RUNNING NOW –find lots of bargains!
I love sharing these opportunities with you every month. I have books in each of them, but you’ll find lots of books by other authors—all at discounted prices, and some are free. Who knows? You might find your all-time favorite author by clicking on these links!
CHRISTMAS IN JULY
https://books.bookfunnel.com/christmas_in_july/spk2umtdn7
SUMMER LOVE
https://books.bookfunnel.com/jmsummerlove/3p02jdrurq
LOVE IS IN THE AIR AT KINDLE UNLIMITED
https://books.bookfunnel.com/amazon-kindle-unlimited/o2imhux3o7
Blessings,
Roxanne
I don’t mind if the characters of one book show up as side characters in the next but I do like my books being standalones. That way I can read the story of how couples meet from the beginning not having to worry I need to read the previous books first. I feel like with trilogies there’s always unnecessary drama. And cliffhangers are a huge no-no for me. It also sucks if you accidentally buy a book that is second in the trilogy. That way you have to buy the first and there’s a chance it’s not available anymore for purchase.
I don’t mind the recipes 🙂 I like recipes for lunch ideas because I never know what to cook 😀
I love the series books and love following the characters however I do like standalones as well. I love your recipes and am hoping to make the Strawberry Shortcake recipe. Thank you.
I do enjoy series. It is like catching up with old friends as the series progresses. If they get too long, I lose interest. I do enjoy recipes.
I enjoy a series but I prefer stand alone. Once I read a book, I need to know about the other characters so then I have to buy all the other books.
I could do without the recipes.
1. I love a series that is interconnected with the rest of the books in the series but also that can be read as stand alone. My pet peeve is cliffhangers at the end of the book
2. I love the recipes you put in the newsletter. I may not like some of them myself but I have found a few that I like or a family member would like.
I love a series that follows a family, but they should be stand-alone in case someone picks one up in the middle. For example, I love The Beach House series by Mary Alice Monroe.
I like that you include family recipes! Keep up what you’re doing. I enjoy your newsletters.
1. I so love series. Sometimes I love short series and sometimes I love longer series. A lot depends on the author and the subject. I do love a series where I can follow along with the characters and watch them grow and learn. I also love series where each book is stand alone.
2. I do love to see recipes on a newsletter. I have to be careful now that I do mostly gluten free. Oh the joys of getting older. LOL
I do enjoy your newsletters. Thank you.
I love a series but each can read as a standalone. I love the recipes.
1. standalone, no cliffhangers
2. keep
I enjoy reading books in series. It allows me to get to know the characters more deeply. I am grateful for stand alones too though because sometimes I just want a lighter experience. I enjoy your recipes; it’s always interested me to see what other people enjoy eating!
I love to read a series. I like the familiar characters. I don’t like cliffhangers. I don’t cook but I look at the recipes to see if it is something i would eat. Thanks for the chance.
1) I’m pretty indifferent about the series vs. stand-alones debate. I see the pros and cons about both sides of the argument. If I’m invested in a storyline/character(s), then reading a series is awesome. If I want to bounce around and try different authors or different storylines, I’m not able to do so if it’s a series because I will have missed important things, jumping into the middle of one or if I read just the first book, they usually end on a cliffhanger. Personally speaking, I enjoy reading a series that isn’t necessarily connected to the others in the series or doesn’t have to be read in a certain order. But having said that, if I’m invested in the characters/setting/storyline, then I’m totally there for the entire series.
2) I love the family recipes that you include in your newsletters and I do try some of them for myself or my family! You should definitely keep them coming!! What I love most about authors’ newsletters, the ones that actually engage with us readers, is getting to know you, your life, your motivations for writing and your workspace. Where do you prefer to write or even read? Is there a certain process you use, for example, do you physically write it first or do you old-school type it out?
Thank you so much for the chance!!
Yes, keep the recipe feature in the newsletter.
I read series but I want only 4 in the series. Sometimes, if there are too many you can’t find them all to read.
It doesn’t matter if they are stand alones
I love a series and it doesn’t matter if they are closely connected or standalones. I don’t like when character change physical characteristics from one story to another. For example, the hero has blue eyes through most of the book and suddenly they turn brown. Or when the characters are related and the ages get twisted from one story to the next.
I enjoy the recipes you post and am looking forward to trying the strawberry shortcake. Have a great day.
I like reading series and seeing what happens to the characters in them.
I love recipies!
Cliffhangers are evil and authors who use them without plenty of warning have earned an eternity stuck in Chuck E Cheeses birthday party with children suffering from a stomach bug – oh and no adult beverages around. Yess I have strong feelings of hatred towards cliffys.
That said, I love series that are interconnected. HOWEVER, each story has to be able to work as a standalone.
I like series books that can also be read as stand alones. And I like having recipes in newsletters and enjoy seeing pics of author’s pets.
I Love series and standalones and I also love the recipes in the newsletter!