Behind the Scenes - Blood at Haught Springs

Today, instead of Sample Saturday, I'm going to go Behind the Scenes of my latest work, Blood at Haught Springs.

I've been asked a couple of questions about this new novella quite a bit, so I thought I'd answer them. The first question is, "Is there a real town called Haught Springs in Texas?"

The answer is, "There could be, but to my knowledge, there isn't."

The second question is, "How did you find the name Haught for your characters?"

The answer to this second question is longer than the first, and there's an uncanny story Behind the Scenes.

When I began writing what became Blood at Haught Springs, I needed names for my characters. I decided to make use of one old writer's secret and go through my phone book for intriguing names. I wrote several down, and when I'd finished the novella, the main characters carried the surname Haught.

Now, Haught is a well-known and respected name in these parts. In fact, I know several people who have that name. However, I did not use any of their traits or characteristics for my characters. I never do that, to the best of my ability.

I liked the ring of the name Haught. I also liked the fact that it sounds like "hot." Who doesn't like "hot" cowboys, ranchers, millers, or storekeepers? I know a lot of readers who do.

Thus it was that I created Haught Springs, Texas, located somewhere on the Texas Panhandle. Maybe west of Amarillo. Maybe a bit east. I'm not telling.

But there's more to the story.

After I released Blood at Haught Springs, Number 1 of the new series, Men of Haught Springs, I learned that the Haught family of Gila County, Arizona, came from Texas. Who could have guessed that? [cue music to Twilight Zone]

Come back next Saturday to see what I spring on you then.
~~~

Two bonus short stories are included with Blood at Haught Springs: Cottonwood Cowboys and No More Strangers. The novella kicks off a new series set in Haught Springs, Texas, a rowdy frontier town bursting at the seams with action, adventure, and intrigue. Join me in a new world of hard-working, rough and tumble men who sometimes aren't exactly who or what they seem to be.

Blood at Haught Springs is now available for $2.99
in ebook formats at all the major online retail outlets:
Smashwords all formats | Kindle | Kobo | Nook | Apple iTunes Bookstore

Sample Saturday - Blood at Haught Springs

Hello! Before I get into today's Sample, I'll let you gaze at the 2015 Whitney Lifetime Achievement Award that now sits on my mantelpiece.

It's heavy! My friend, who accepted the award in my place, had troubles getting it through the TSA because, you know, it's a pointy object. LOL!

Okay, now on to today's Sample from Blood at Haught Springs, which I released yesterday in ebook formats. Lonnie Haught is feeling pretty good. He just got a promising job with a newcomer to Haught Springs.
~~~

Lonnie strolled into the store using the front door, a smile on his lips and satisfaction warming his soul. Even though the bell still jangled behind him, Wes was too preoccupied in tending to a customer to glance up and notice who had come in.

Lonnie’s smile broadened. Wes may have got a jump on him with the leases, but Lonnie would have the last laugh. I’ve got a paying job now. No more depending on Wes for pocket change.

He coughed slightly to make sure Wes looked up and saw him before he sauntered into the back room. He could feel Wes’s glare boring a hole between his shoulder blades, but it didn’t matter anymore. I’ve got a job, a good job. Mr. Badger said it would be worth my while.

He grinned as he lifted his gun belt and holstered pistol down from the nail where he had left them hanging yesterday, and strapped on the rig. Knees slightly bent, he pulled the pistol quickly from the holster. He had to remember not to lock his knees in excitement. He might need to move after a bit of gunplay. He grinned again. Mr. Badger had said he’d probably have a task for him on Monday morning. Maybe he’s got an enemy to put down. Such a nice thought. Gunfighters make top money.

Lonnie tried his quick draw again, then checked the cartridges in the chambers and replaced the pistol in the holster. Straightening up from the task, he took in a deep breath. I’m a bodyguard. Probably a gunfighter, too. Wes can’t say that. He’s only a storekeeper.

Lonnie dusted off a speck of lint that had fallen onto his trousers, and looked out the door. Evidently, Wes had filled the customer’s order and taken it out to her wagon, because now he was hunkered down over paperwork. I’ll never have to do paperwork again. As far as I’m concerned, the old man can give Wes the entire lousy business, lock, stock, and barrel. I’m working for a big man, now.
~~~

Two bonus short stories are included with Blood at Haught Springs: Cottonwood Cowboys and No More Strangers. The novella kicks off a new series set in Haught Springs, Texas, a rowdy frontier town bursting at the seams with action, adventure, and intrigue. Join me in a new world of hard-working, rough and tumble men who sometimes aren't exactly who or what they seem to be.

Blood at Haught Springs is available for $2.99
in ebook formats at the following online retail outlets:
Smashwords all formats | Kindle | Kobo
It will soon be available at the Nook and Apple iTunes bookstores, as well.

Sample Saturday: Blood at Haught Spring 3

Welcome to Haught Sp-- Sample Saturday! In this sample from Blood at Haught Springs, a novella I'll be publishing later this year, Wesley Haught is taking his new clients out to see the house they will be leasing.
~~~

As soon as he could get the buggy hitched, Wes drove it around to the store and halted the horses. He swung down and handed the girl up into the rear seat, although he would have preferred having her beside him. It was the father's place to sit up front, so he could see the house straight away as they approached it. That was more important than Wes being able to make a pitch for the daughter's attention. Even so, his toes tingled slightly.

As Wes drove out of town, he endeavored to make light conversation in order to save his sales push for when Mr. Badger saw the place.

“Have you folks come a long way to reach Haught Springs?”

“Montana,” Mr. Badger replied.

Wes kept quiet, hoping the man would expand on the one-word explanation. When he said no more, Wes asked, “Brutal winters?”

“Very.”

“You'll find the winters to be moderate in our area. You've made a good choice, coming here.”

“My sister, little Annie, couldn't get used to the cold,” Nina said from the back seat. “It made her ill.”

Wes envisioned a small girl shivering in a threadbare coat, like a character in a Dickens story, and then figured that was foolish. This man had enough money to keep his family warm.

He tried again. “What sort of commerce are you in, Mr. Badger? The bank building will need renovations, I imagine.”

“Not so. It suits as it is.”

“It does?”

“I'm opening a bank.”

“Well, that's good news. We could use a bank hereabouts. Business has picked up lately.”

“So I hear.”

And that was as far as the conversation stretched. Wes wondered what his father would have done to prod more responses from Mr. Badger. He hoped Miss Nina was more of a conversationalist. He could scarcely wait to get her alone to find out.

The silence continued as he drove the horses at a sprightly rate down onto the river road, thoughts of the lovely girl behind him filling his mind.

Miss Nina laid a hand on his shoulder and asked, “Is the house much farther? I’m so anxious to see it.”

He swung his head to look toward her, his toes tingling so much he could scarcely respond to her question. “It’s not so much farther on,” he finally managed to say. Her hand lay so softly upon him that he wondered if it was really made of flesh and bones.

“I’m glad. We’ve traveled so far in anticipation of arriving at a good place.”

“Haught Springs is the best place hereabouts to settle, Miss,” he replied. “We have abundant water from the river, and good weather. Your family has made a good choice.”

“Father is quite astute,” she murmured, and patted his shoulder.

He thought he would melt. The skin around her huge blue eyes crinkled a bit as she smiled at him.
~~~

Discount pricing for Read an Ebook Week lasts through tonight, March 12, 2016, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time.

Click here to go to my Profile Page at Smashwords.com, where you will find a list of my books and stories.

Use the coupon code RAE25 at checkout for the following discounted items:

The Zion Trail
Gone for a Soldier
The Man from Shenandoah
Ride to Raton
Trail of Storms
Spinster's Folly
Western Stories: Four Tales of the West

The following items are regularly FREE:

The Owen Family Saga Sampler
Thumps and Losers: Two Short Stories
Rapid Recipes for Writers . . . And Other Busy People

Use coupon code RAE25 at checkout.

Sample Saturday: Blood at Haught Springs 2

Welcome to Sample Saturday! I'm continuing this week with another tidbit from Blood at Haught Springs, a novella I'll be publishing later this year.

Wes Haught has just negotiated not one, but two leases to a newcomer in Haught Springs, a frontier town in west Texas.
~~~

Wes stuck his head into the back room and said, “I have an errand, so I’m leaving you in charge of the store.”  He didn't bother to explain to Lonnie where he was going before he shepherded Mr. Badger and his fascinating daughter toward the door. Let his lazy brother think what he wanted.

He opened the door wide, and Mr. Badger took the lead, stalking out onto the porch. Wes smiled covertly at Miss Nina behind her father's back. She returned the smile with a little arching of her eyebrow, which Wes took to be a good sign.

Showing the building to Mr. Badger seemed to take no time at all, even though Lonnie clearly had ignored the weekly maintenance. As Wes took him through, the man nodded at the features: the railing that divided the customer area from the working space, the teller cages, the banker's office, the back room, and the rear entrance. Mr. Badger agreed to the lease conditions and price without hesitation, and they shook hands on the matter.

“I'll draw up the paperwork and bring it to you at the hotel,” Wes said, exiting the building. “While I put the horses into harness, you and your daughter can sit in the shade of the awning in front of the store. I won't be long.”

Miss Nina lagged slightly behind her father, glancing back over her shoulder and wiggling her fingers in temporary farewell. Wes felt as though she had planted a kiss on his cheek.

After she turned away, he punched the air in elation. Let Lonnie gnash his teeth with rage. If Wes got ahead, it was Lonnie's own fault for being a lazy lout. Dad couldn't quibble over Wes’s management of the business if he pulled off making two leases in one day. He hurried around the block to get the buggy hitched.
~~~

I hope you have purchased your copy of The Zion Trail by now. If you haven't, here are the purchase links:

Kindle | Barnes and Noble (Nook)
iTunes (Apple iBook Store) 
Kobo | Smashwords (all formats)

See you next week! 
 

Sample Saturday - Blood at Haught Springs

Although I hate to leave The Zion Trail behind, I will share a tidbit from a new work that will launch later this year. Here's the description:

Wes Haught wants his brother to grow up and take on his share of the chores at the family's general store. Lonnie Haught dreams of the day he can leave home and use his gun. Both brothers resent the added work their father's recent accident has laid on them.

When a new family arrives in Haught Springs, Wes falls for the fair-haired daughter, while Lonnie seizes upon the father's offer of a job as his chance for escape. But lies unravel and lives hang in the balance as brother fights against brother.

Fiery emotions clash in a new Western adventure from the author of the acclaimed Owen Family Saga.
~~~

Wesley Haught opened a barrel of beans, set the wooden top aside, and prepared to sack up ten pounds for his waiting customer, Mrs. Slonaker. The bell over the door of the store jangled, and he looked up. A tall, bearded man came through the door. Wes was sure he hadn't visited Haught's General Store and Commercial Emporium before. Perhaps he was just passing through town. Wes appraised the dark suit the man wore, made of expensive fabric and nicely cut. He must have money. Maybe he’ll spend some of it today. He smiled at the thought.

“Morning,” Wes said. “I'll be with you shortly.”

“Take your time,” the stranger replied, but with a terseness to his voice that indicated he was not in the habit of waiting his turn. He stroked a nicely trimmed yellow beard that had two streaks of gray. His hair—that is, what Wes could see below the man’s bowler hat—was a lighter color of yellow, as though it had faded over the years.

Wes bagged and weighed the beans, then tied the sack closed with a bit of twine. He'd just turned to add the beans to Mrs. Slonaker's order piled on the counter, when the door's bell jangled again as it opened. A rustle of skirts told him he had another female customer.

“Lonnie,” he called over his shoulder into the back room. Lazy lay-about, he thought, his mood turning sour. At nineteen, Lonnie was three years younger than Wes, and he was the worst brother in town. In his mind's eye, he saw Lonnie sitting at the work table, feet propped on the top. Playing with a pistol. As usual. The fact that Dad didn’t seem to see Lonnie’s shiftlessness was like a knife in Wes’s guts.

“Lonnie! Get out here. Folks are lining up.” He hated using a brusque tone of voice in front of customers, but Lonnie wouldn't move unless he thought Wes meant it.

“In a minute,” Lonnie hollered.

From the sounds coming from the back room—the clicks of rotation and soft swishes of metal seating into metal, Wes knew his brother was fitting cartridges into the cylinder of his pistol. “Humph.” Wes turned back in time to see the new arrival close the door, sashay toward the man in the suit, and take his arm.

“Father,” she said. “Annie and the driver are at the hotel.”
~~~

I hope you got your copy of The Zion Trail by now. If you haven't, here are purchase links for you:

Kindle | Barnes and Noble (Nook)
iTunes (Apple iBook Store) 
Kobo | Smashwords (all formats)

I received the proof for the print book edition yesterday. When I finish reading through it yet another time to check for any possible errors, I'll take whatever action I need to, and the book will proceed on its path toward actual printing. I'll let you know when it's available as a print edition.

Sample Saturday - The Zion Trail

I hope you got your copy of The Zion Trail by now. If you haven't, here are purchase links for you:

Kindle | Barnes and Noble (Nook)
iTunes (Apple iBook Store) 
Kobo | Smashwords (all formats)

"Once again, Marsha Ward has woven an exciting historical novel. Elijah Marshall's adventures, trials, and faith building experiences as he journeys on The Zion Trail will keep readers turning pages until the end!"
~Loralee Evans, author of The Shores of Bountiful, and other novels.

In this week's excerpt, Lije Marshall has come in from the fields for the noon meal and is surprised at the fare.
~~~

Ma was in the kitchen, putting slices of cold beef between slabs of bread.

“Is this for dinner, Ma?”

“Lije, it takes less time to prepare sandwiches than a meal. I don’t want to miss any more of the elders’ talk than I have to.” She wiped her hands on her apron, and I again noticed the bulge on her front side. Ma caught me looking at her stomach, and she laughed. “Yes, I’m going to have a child, Lije. This one will grow up knowing the right way to live.”

“What do you mean, Ma?” I suspected I knew the answer, but wanted confirmation.

“I’ll let your pa say. You go in and listen to the elders. I fear you haven’t heard enough of their preaching.”

“There’s been the work. Pa hasn’t ever let the work go before.”

She must have taken notice of my concern. “It’ll be all right soon, Lije. Pa’s been discussing religion with the elders all morning, and he’s about learned all there is to know about their church.” She smiled, a warm, secret smile that as much as told me what I wanted to know. “Now go in and take heed of the message.”

I went.
~~~

Remember to get your ebook copy of The Zion Trail:

Kindle | Barnes and Noble (Nook)
iTunes (Apple iBook Store) 
Kobo | Smashwords (all formats)

See you next week!

Fresh Book Friday - The Zion Trail

It's Friday!!! Can't stop dancing around the room. I get to feature my own novel today for Fresh Book Friday, so here are all the details:

Title: The Zion Trail
Author: Marsha Ward
Genre: Western Religious Fiction
Publisher: WestWard Books
Date of Publication: February 19, 2016
Price: $3.99 (ebook formats)
Print edition (March 25) $12.99

Book Description:
On a hot summer day, young Elijah Marshall stops plowing to give a drink of water to two strangers and invite them to lunch with his family. His neighborly act sets in motion events that will drastically change his future.

The strangers share a new religion, which the family embraces. But the neighbors want no part of Mormons. Multiple acts of unkindness and starvation drive the Marshall family to flee to the Mormon city on the banks of the Mississippi River, Nauvoo.

Then the path of Elijah's life takes perilous detours, with twists and turns he never expected to make.

In a 19th century coming-of-age story ranging from Pennsylvania to the Great Salt Lake Valley, Elijah plunges into harrowing adventures filled with sorrow, danger, and romance.

Excerpt:
I spent a nervous night under the wagon, anticipating my meeting with strangers. In truth, my family and I would be the interlopers, but that thought did not calm my anxiety. At last the dawn came, and with it, the Sabbath day. I ate the food Ma gave me, but it sat upon my stomach like a lump of rock: undigested and indigestible.

We left our camp nearly forty-five minutes before the appointed hour for the meeting, in case we should get lost. I had worked myself into quite an unsettled condition by the time I pulled the horses to a halt at the appointed street corner.

We had arrived in the center of the town. The streets were practically deserted, cloaked in an appropriate stillness for the Lord’s Day. However, I could see no building resembling a church.

“Are we there, Lije?” Mary Eliza called from the back of the wagon.

I groaned inwardly. She had asked that same question time and time again during our travels. I wondered how Pa stood her infantile questions.

“I’ll find out, Pumpkin.”

I looked from one building to the next, seeking to verify that we had come to the correct intersection in the city. Ma, who sat beside me on the wagon seat, looked as puzzled as I felt. She glanced at the paper in her hand, furrowed her brows, and nodded to me.

We were at the right location, but the directions we had been given had brought us to a saloon.

I stood and surveyed the four corners of the intersection. I was mistaken. I counted one, two, three, four saloons, each one firmly planted on its own corner.

“This cannot be correct,” I muttered, wrapping the lines around the brake handle. “I’ll go ask where the Mormon’s church house is to be found.” I vaulted to the ground and looked around for a friendly face I might approach for guidance.

A sandy-haired man dressed in his Sunday best, accompanied by a woman and four children, came into view from around a corner, walked past us, then stopped before the saloon closest to us. He pulled a ring of keys from his pocket.

Surely he wasn’t taking his family into that den of iniquity?

Sure enough, he unlocked the door, opened it, and headed inside.

Perplexed by his actions, I looked for another avenue for enlightenment, but none was at hand. Needing information, I sidled toward the man and his family, who were filing after him through the doorway.

I caught up to him inside the saloon. “I beg your indulgence,” I said. “Might you give me directions?”

“Certainly, brother,” he replied, which I thought was a strange greeting.

“I’m looking for the Mormon edifice.”

“Edifice?”

Perhaps I hadn’t imagined a grand enough structure. I tried again. “Cathedral?”

“Oh, you’re looking for their meeting place.”

“Yes, I—”

“You’ve found it, lad.”

“What? Here?” I looked around the bar room in confusion. A depiction of a wanton woman hanging behind the bar caused me to blush.

The man chuckled as the woman I presumed to be his wife handed him a covered basket. “Yes. We have no building of our own, so we rent the saloon. It’s closed on Sundays, you know.”

“You’re a Mormon?”

“Indeed, I am.” He stuck out his hand and grasped mine. “Ralph Peters, at your service. I’m the branch president here.”

“Branch president?” I shook his hand, wondering what the words signified.

He must have guessed at my confusion. “I’m the local leader. Are you of our faith?”

“Newly baptized,” I told him, and pointed toward the door. “My mother and my brother and sister are outside. The elders said we were to come here to meetings.”

He nodded and placed the basket upon the bar. As he took off his hat and coat and began to roll up his shirtsleeves, I shifted my gaze sideways at the bottles lined up behind the bar and noticed that a piece of cloth had been draped over the painting, thankfully covering the nakedness of the soiled woman.

I looked further around the room. A young man of about my age and his younger brother were engaged in stacking the tables in a corner. Bright red hair peeked out from under their caps. A girl nudged a chair into a row. Her braids were not red, but a pleasing yellow color.

Evidently ready to engage in more conversation, Mr. Peters said, “When they last stopped by, Elders Caldwell and Long mentioned they had made converts of several families out in the county. Did your father not come?”

“He’s laid up with injury,” I said. “My older sister is tending to him. He thought it important that we come.”

“And rightly so,” Mr. Peters said. “Saints must gather together for strength, particularly hereabouts.”

Remembering my manners, I gave my name, and that of my mother and siblings.

“Well now, young Brother Marshall, bring in your family and help us make the place decent. We’ll begin on the hour.”

Endorsements: 
“Once again, Marsha Ward has woven an exciting historical novel. Elijah Marshall's adventures, trials, and faith building experiences as he journeys on The Zion Trail will keep readers turning pages until the end!”
 ~Loralee Evans, author of The Shores of Bountiful, and other novels.

“Marsha Ward's genius rises to her highest peak in The Zion Trail, with spot-on period terminology and meticulous attention to detail. It pulled me back to that time when my fourth-great-grandfather converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and took that Zion trail, and beyond.” 
~Debra Erfert, author of Window of Time, Changes of the Heart, It Takes a Sleuth, and Relative Evil.

“Marsha Ward has long been one of my favorite Western authors. She is a masterful storyteller who paints a picture so vivid, I feel as though I'm peeking back in time and catching a glimpse of life a hundred years before I was born. I highly recommend The Zion Trail.”
~Amelia C. Adams, author of the Kansas Crossroads series.

“A wonderful book with heartwarming characters. I enjoyed every moment of it.”
~Rebecca Shelley, author of the Dragonbound series.

“From an unexpected beginning in Pennsylvania, Elijah Marshall travels through heartbreak to claim his purpose in life. While the story illustrates the early history of the LDS church, the message is one of personal triumph through perseverance, culminating in a most satisfying resolution you won’t want to end.”
~Carolyn Steele, author of Soda Springs and Willow Springs.

Purchase Links for ebooks:
Kindle | Nook | iTunes | Kobo | Smashwords (all ebook formats)

Author Bio:
Amazon best-selling author Marsha Ward writes authentic historical fiction set in 19th Century America, and contemporary romance. She was born in the sleepy little town of Phoenix, Arizona, in a simpler time. With plenty of room to roam among the chickens and citrus trees, Marsha enjoyed playing with neighborhood chums, but always had her imaginary friend, cowboy Johnny Rigger Prescott, at her side. Now she makes her home in a forest in the mountains of Arizona. She loves to hear from her readers.

Find Marsha online:
marshaward.com
facebook.com/authormarshaward
marshaward.blogspot.com
twitter.com/MarshaWard
authormarshaward@gmail.com

Join Marsha's Readers Mailing List to be notified of new releases: Click here  

Sample Saturday: The Zion Trail is launching next Friday!

Yes, my new novel, The Zion Trail, is "dropping" next Friday, February 19th. Want to make sure you receive it? It's ready to pre-order at these online vendors, so get your copy reserved now:

Kindle | Barnes and Noble (Nook) 
iTunes (Apple iBook Store) | Kobo

Here's an endorsement a fellow writer gave the book:

“In The Zion Trail, Marsha Ward weaves an intriguing tale of a young man’s journey in faith. From an unexpected beginning in Pennsylvania, Elijah Marshall travels through heartbreak to cross the American plains to claim his purpose in life. While the story illustrates the early history of the LDS church, the message is one of personal triumph through perseverance. The relationships kindled throughout the book lead through unimaginable trials, culminating in a most satisfying resolution that you won’t want to end.”
~Carolyn Steele, author of Soda Springs and Willow Springs

Today's brief tidbit shows one of the relationships Mrs. Steele talks about: that of Lije and his younger sister, Mary Eliza.
~~~

By the time Pa dismissed us to go about our assigned tasks, Mary Eliza had awakened and gotten herself to the table. She had a cold bowl of porridge before her, into which she had slopped a healthy portion of milk. Her hair hadn’t been combed and hung halfway into her face. I chuckled and patted her on the head as I proceeded on my way outside, and felt her squirm under my hand.

“Lije,” she protested. “Don’t mess my hair.”

I squatted to look into her face. “You look beautiful, Pumpkin,” I said. “Eat hearty. We’re going on an adventure.”

“A ‘venture, Lije?”

“You’ll see tomorrow,” I told her, and left her with those teasing words hanging in the air.
~~~
Remember to reserve your ebook copy of The Zion Trail at these online retailer's stores:

Kindle | Barnes and Noble (Nook) 
iTunes (Apple iBook Store) | Kobo

See you next week!

Sample Saturday: The Zion Trail is getting ready for Launch Day

So, it's "next month" now and The Zion Trail is almost ready for Launch Day. "And when is that?" you ask.

And I answer: "Soon. Very soon. But the first folks to get that info are the Subscribers to my Readers Mailing List." See that box over there? --->

That's where you subscribe, so, you know, you are the first to get the word - and to learn about the special offer!

I can't hold on to the release of all that yummy goodness to my Mailing List much longer, folks. I'm looking to send it out on Monday, so this is your last chance to sign up before I hit the "Send" button!

Here is the REAL cover for the ebook. I jumped the gun with what I thought was the final version last week, but this one is the real deal. Pretty, huh?

Today's Sample is the tidbit below, featuring part of the book description and part of an awesome endorsement by author Loralee Evans. The print depicts Fort Bridger, one of the final mercantile stops along the Mormon Trail.

I have more endorsements coming in, some of which will make it onto the back cover of the print version coming out in March.

Go put your email address in that box and hit the Subscribe button. Now. Then check your inbox for the confirmation message.

See you next week!

Sample Saturday: The Zion Trail

Welcome to Sample Saturday!

I'm pleased to report that formatting is finished for the ebook version of The Zion Trail, and it only lacks some "publisher" work before it is released next month. See that box over to the right? The one that says, "Enter your email address..." That is where you subscribe to my Readers Mailing List so you will be among the first to learn the Launch Date of this brand new novel.

Am I excited? Maybe not as much as when the house on the hillside behind my house burned to the ground on Tuesday night, but that's a different kind of excitement (more like terror).

Instead, I am excited in a good way.

I'm also excited that the final version of the ebook cover is finished. Here. It. Is:

See the tag line? Guess what that means.

Enough suspense. Here's the sample for today. The Marshall family is about to make a huge change in their lives:
~~~

Late one night I awoke to use the chamber pot and heard my mother sobbing to my father that she could no longer bear to live here. The next morning, he presented us with a plan: instead of continuing to figure out how to plant crops this season, at the end of March we would gather to Zion, which meant we would begin a journey to Nauvoo, Illinois, on the banks of the Mississippi River.

Oh, the fuss and feathers that flew over that scheme! Sarah refused to go, crying the night through and arising with swollen, red eyes and a severe attitude not much mended by sleep. I had no patience with her. Taxed by all that had occurred, even the thought of losing my field did not deter my hope that another place—any place—would be better than this one.

Pa and John and I bore the brunt of carrying out the plan in the limited time until March thirty-first. Ma was still too weak to participate in much of the work, Mary Eliza was too young, and Sarah refused to perform any labor having to do with our removal. Accordingly, Pa tasked me with many kitchen chores. I therefore learned to accomplish many housewifely chores, and didn’t regret a minute of it.

John found my cheerfulness in the kitchen to be strange, and ragged me about it unmercifully. I didn’t care. I was desperate to get to Zion. If cooking and cleaning up and doing whatever I could to make it possible was unmanly, I simply did not care. Who was to notice? We had no visitors, no nearby kin, no one to wonder at my unnatural education in kitchen skills.

Only one thing chafed me: sharing kitchen time with Sarah. Although I wondered where my former compassion for my sister had gone, I had grown impatient with her constant haranguing against my faith, and her adamant refusal to obey our father. In my mind, she lived under her father’s roof; therefore, she owed him obedience.
~~~

Okay, what do you think is going to happen next?

Go sign up for the Readers Mailing List over there at the top of the right sidebar. See you next week!

Sample Saturday The Zion Trail #5

Welcome to Sample Saturday. This scene is an excerpt from my forthcoming novel, The Zion Trail, which will be available in ebook format early next year. Lije expresses his concerns to his father following John's altercation with neighbor boys. Caution: Mormon beliefs are briefly discussed in this excerpt.
~~~

By suppertime, John looked like a new man—well, boy at least—with his damp hair combed into submission and the egg residue absent from his person.

Ma said she would sit with us at the table that night. She told John he was to take the tray into Pa’s room to explain his altercation and help Pa eat, if he needed any assistance.

Before we sat down to supper, I looked in on Pa. He looked better with the color fading from the bruise on his face. He was able to open his eye now. I could tell he chafed at Ma’s insistence that he stay in bed, as he wasn’t a man to be idle.

“Elijah,” he greeted me.

I sat beside his bed and gave him a report on the farm work. When I had finished, he stared into my eyes for a long moment, then nodded.

“You are doing well, son, but what is troubling you?”

I don’t know why I was surprised that he had read me so easily. I took a moment to formulate an answer.

“Reverend Silcoe has added to our woes,” I said. “He preached against us on Sunday, according to John.” I paused. “I should let him tell the tale. He’ll be here shortly with your supper.”

“All right. I’ll hear him out. You are fretting, Lije.”

“I didn’t expect folks to beat you and pick on John merely because we chose to join a different church. Ma said the same.” I looked down. My fists were clenched so tightly that my knuckles appeared as snow-capped mountains. I eased my hands open and gripped my knees instead.

Pa reached out his hand, and I took it gingerly. “That book the elders left. The Book of Mormon. At the beginning, the prophet Lehi was laughed to scorn because of his belief in God’s word. His sons were in danger of their lives when they returned to gather records. Can we expect better treatment?”

I shifted in the chair, remembering my promise to President Peters to read that book. “I guess not.”

Pa nodded. “So it was anciently. So it is today. People sometimes fear truth, especially when it calls for change.” He squeezed my hand. “Go to supper, Lije, and give no more worry to the matter.”

I left him then and went to eat, trying to let his counsel sooth my own fears.
~~~

Thank you for visiting. The Zion Trail will be published in 2016 as an ebook, and if there is sufficient demand, in print. To keep up-to-date on when The Zion Trail will be published, along with other new releases, and to learn of special offers and sales, click here to join my Readers email list. In your inbox, you will also receive instructions on how to download a free ebook of my last novel, Gone for a Soldier.

Sample Saturday The Zion Trail #4

Welcome to Sample Saturday. This scene is an excerpt from my forthcoming novel, The Zion Trail, which will be available in ebook format early next year. Lije Marshall's little brother John has been sent on an errand.
~~~

A few days later, Ma sent John to town with a basket of eggs to trade for a few pounds of sugar at the general store. He returned later than he should have, eggs smeared on his clothing and in his hair. One of his eyes sported significant swelling and bruising. I followed him into the kitchen.

Ma cried out and bent down to grasp his chin in her fingers. Turning his face from side to side, she checked him for additional damage. “What happened, son?”

“Mr. Green wouldn’t trade with me, Ma. I was on my way to the McFate’s when the Green boys . . . stopped me,” he said.

“You fought with them?” I asked.

“They started it,” he mumbled through the washing cloth with which Ma was cleaning his face.

“I hope you gave as good as you got,” I said.

He didn’t answer me on that score at the time. Instead, he muttered, “The reverend preached against us, Ma. Sam Green said he was only doing his Christian duty.”

“Well, Sam Green’s ma is going to get a piece of my mind,” Ma said, releasing John’s chin.

“It was his Pa’s doing,” John protested. He rubbed his cheek where the imprint of Ma’s fingers remained. “I guess it didn’t even start there,” he added. “The preacher started the whole thing, speaking out against us.”

Ma sighed. “You could say we started it.” She straightened up, holding her shoulders high. “We joined God’s true church, but that ought not bring such unchristian treatment down upon us.”

I agreed with her assessment, but didn’t say anything.

“You’ll need a good scrubbing to get that egg out of your hair,” Ma continued. “Go draw a couple of buckets of water, and I’ll heat the boiler.” She gestured toward the water reservoir on the stove.

“Oh, Ma. It’s not Saturday night.”

“No, but you’ll thank me come bedtime.”

“Can’t I just use a bucketful of water and scrub up in the barn?”

Seeing that John had come to no lasting harm, I left him to try his best persuasions with our mother, and went back outside to finish my chores.
~~~

Thank you for visiting. The Zion Trail will be published soon as an ebook, and after that, in print. To keep up-to-date on when The Zion Trail will be published, along with other new releases, and to learn of special offers and sales, click here to join my Readers mail list. In your inbox, you will also receive instructions on how to download a free ebook of my last novel, Gone for a Soldier.

Don't forget the ongoing Thanksgiving Blockbuster eBook Sale going on this weekend. Click here for the complete list of books available at discount prices this weekend. But hurry! The sale ends Monday.