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Patricia Sands

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bestseller

Six more days!

January 25, 2022 by Patricia Sands 2 Comments

January 31 is the final day in the Kindle sale of the three novels in my Love in Provence series. I hope you have taken advantage of this great deal!

I have no control over when Amazon chooses my books for discounts and am always delighted when I receive an email from their Marketing people informing me. Discounts on books has nothing to do with the literary value and everything to do with inviting new readers to enjoy the work.

As I often mention, if you already have this series in your library, it’s very simple to gift ebooks to friends and even have them delivered on special dates. You simply click on this link when you go to buy the ebook online.

One of the great rewards for me from writing these stories is opening my email to discover messages from readers sharing how they related to the stories … how they had experienced something similar to Kat at the beginning of The Promise of Provence. Hearing people explain how they were inspired to make changes or to take chances and explore new possibilities in life is absolutely priceless to me. I’m so grateful readers take the time to share their thoughts and experiences.

If you have not read the series, here is a bit of history.

The Promise of Provence was my second novel and I wrote it as a stand alone story. You, the readers, turned it into Book One of the series. You wanted more details about Kat’s journey and it was a pleasure to write the next two books … and then the Villa des Violettes series, which is not finished … I promise!

When I knew I was going to set the story of The Promise of Provence in Antibes, my husband and I rented an apartment there for five months.

Overlooking the old town, the harbour and all the way to the Baie des Anges and the Alpes Maritimes beyond, the view was as inspiring as it was breathtaking. We really lucked out finding the unit.

Although I had the bones of the story outlined, I had not settled on exactly who Katherine would meet there. Each morning I would take my panier, my camera, and a dictionary and wind my way through the oldest ruelles to the famous daily Provençal market.

Needless to say, my camera shutter steamed on a daily basis … and no wonder we have returned year after year to this special town.

As I stood in line at the most popular cheese stand one morning, shortly after we arrived in town, I watched the busy fromager discussing a wedge of cheese with a customer and was immediately attracted … not just because he was *ahem* gorgeous.

The passion on his face and his enthusiastic body language made it obvious how much he loved his work … and the character of Philippe was born. In my halting French a few days later, I explained to the fromager about the book I was writing. For several mornings at 7 a.m., before the market opened, he was gracious about spending some time with me answering my questions and giving me a quick education on his craft. Sadly he is no longer at the market, but lives on in my novels. (I’ve always loved that he brought Katherine cheese rather than flowers on special occasions.)

And let us not forget the character, Nick, also a popular favourite with readers. Walking past the harbour each morning, his story came alive.

Now back to the market … I would take my time filling my panier with flowers, olives, fruit, veggies and whatever the dinner menu called for.

Next I would pop into one of many fine boulangeries … say no more …

And my final stop would be at Le Vieil Antibes for a café crème at my favourite table where I could take notes on village life and read the morning edition of Nice Matin, with my trusty dictionary close at hand.

My head spinning with inspiration and ideas, I would rush home to spend hours writing. How I miss those days!

Thanks for spending a few moments with my memories and the story of how Book One ~ The Promise of Provence came to be, followed later … thanks to demand from readers … by Book Two – Promises to Keep and Book Three – I Promise You This.

Please feel free to let your friends know about the sale!

Happy reading! Bonne lecture!

I love sharing the trailer for the series … let it take you away.

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Filed Under: Author Promotion, Blog, France, Photo blogs, Uncategorized, Writing Tagged With: Antibes, award winner, bestseller, Côte d'Azur, follow your dreams, French Riviera, I Promise You This, Kindle Daily Deal, Patricia Sands, photography, Promises To Keep, Provence, The Promise of Provence, womens fiction, writing

Bette Lee Crosby is in the house!

May 4, 2016 by Patricia Sands Leave a Comment

Small head shotI have a treat for you today! USA Today Bestselling and Award-winning novelist Bette Lee Crosby has dropped by to spend some time with us. Bette’s women’s fiction novels are described as ““Well-crafted storytelling populated by memorable characters caught up in equally memorable circumstances.” I love her stories!

One of the nicest women you could ever know,  I first met Bette Lee Crosby a few years ago when I was getting ready to publish my second novel, The Promise of Provence. Bette is a fine story-teller as well as a smart, experienced marketer and she is beyond generous at sharing her knowledge. Besides that, she’s never without that bright smile and her sunny Southern disposition.

One of the best things about being part of the writing community is the opportunity to become friends with someone like Bette. Now here’s a chance for you to get to know her better too:

PS ~ Was it always your desire to be an author or was there one time in your life when you realized this was the path you would take?

BLC ~ Actually I studied to be an artist. My very first job was as a packaging designer – working primarily with soft goods such as pantyhose. I asked one of the salesmen for copy to go on the back on the package and he told me to ‘just make something up’ – I did, and a new career was born. I ultimately went from design into marketing and found I enjoyed writing much more than I did designing.

PS ~ That’s a great story in itself! Do you draw from past experiences in your own life when you develop ideas for your novels?

BLC ~ Often I do. Sometimes my own life, sometimes the lives of friends who so generously share their stories with me. These incidents give me food for thought but I generally end up with a story that is still quite different from what actually happened.

PS ~ Your Memory House series has a clever theme linking each novel. Why do you think readers are so drawn to these stories?

BLC ~ I think most people would like to believe there is a bit of magic to life – things that seem like coincidence, but just might be ordered by someone much higher up than we are. Ophelia Browne of Memory House finds this type of magic in the memories other people leave behind. I have had so many reviewers say, “This makes me wonder if the memories you leave behind actually can be found by someone else…”

PS ~ Do you have a favorite character or particular story that gave you the most pleasure to write?

BLC ~ I have a great fondness for Ethan Allen of Spare Change. He is an eleven-year-old boy modeled after the way I imagined my mom was at that age. She came from a large West Virginia family and had a tough childhood. But she was a survivor who overcame the odds, which is how Ethan Allen deals with the challenges he encounters in the story.

PS ~  Your stories are filled with rich detail, emotion and humor, and such a variety of settings. How do you begin to plan these tales and are you a plotter or a pantser?

BLC ~ This is a question I often ask myself. I have tried both but I guess I have to say the pantser method is more in keeping with my style of writing. On the few times I did do a truly comprehensive outline, the characters drew the story in a totally different direction. The one thing I do before I actually start writing is really get to know my characters. I get inside their head and start to think the way they’d think, then I know when I stumble down the wrong pathway they will let me know quickly enough. When I try to make characters do something that is not of their nature, the action becomes stinted and almost impossible to write.

PS ~  Your special assistant and muse, Sugar, is such a cutie.13102827_10206802488045525_3909355318178293556_n Along with tossing her toys, how do you spend time when you’re not writing?

BLC ~ Reading, laying by the pool and thinking of new stories, dinner dates, movies and occasional dances with hubby, long walks with Sugar, shopping with girlfriends. I spend so much time writing and with all the side jobs that are part and parcel of publishing a book, that I tend to content myself with moments of pleasure whenever there is time. When you love what you do, it’s not the same as really working and with living in Florida it’s like I am always on vacation.

PS ~ Congratulations! The good news is out that you have completed you next novel, The Regrets of Cyrus Dodd. Would you tell us a bit about the story, please?

The Regrets of Cyrus Dodd - Ebook SmallBLC ~ Since I just yesterday finished writing the description for this book, I will include it here. THE REGRETS OF CYRUS DODD…The Wyattsville Series, Book 4 Revenge, death, deception… These are the things Cyrus Dodd has to overcome if he is to give Ruth the life he’s promised her. The problem is he’s got a prideful nature and when a seemingly innocuous argument leads to a bitter feud with his neighbor, his life changes forever. The plans he has fall by the wayside and before he finds a way to fix it, he comes to understand the meaning of regret. In this early twentieth century family saga, two men come up against each other—both are iron-willed and stubborn. One will lose his farm; the other will lose his family. In a tale of betrayal, murder and revenge two West Virginia farmers will discover that being right does not necessarily mean being happy. Believing he has lost everything Cyrus Dodd is forced to start over. He promises Ruth that this time it will be better, but the truth is he doesn’t know if it’s a promise he can keep.

PS ~ Bette, that’s sounds like another fascinating story! I can’t wait to read it!

Thank you for all the wonderful stories you bring to readers around the world. Thanks also for stopping by and visiting here. It’s always a pleasure to spend time with you.

BLC ~ Thank you for having me, Patricia. I always look forward to the times when you are in Florida and we can get together for a face-to-face afternoon. It is so good to share thoughts and ideas about this fun crazy book business.

Ditto, Bette. Every visit with you is sheer pleasure … plus you serve delicious lunches!  Some of the best times are when you host a group of writer/friends during the winter. Everyone has already begun looking forward to the next!

You can connect with Bette at her website, on FaceBook, and her Amazon Author Page.

(Here are a few memories from past good times with … can you spot them (?) … Diane Capri, Jillian Dodd, Christine Nolfi, Karla Darcy, Steena Holmes, Leona DeRosa Bodie, and Bette’s always-a-good-sport husband, Dick.)

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Filed Under: Author Promotion, Blog, News, Uncategorized, Writing Tagged With: authors, award-winning, bestseller, bette lee crosby, Patricia Sands, womens fiction

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