Michelle Sutton ~ Interview + Giveaway!

*You can earn up to 6 entries in this giveaway. Read below for details*

Today author Michelle Sutton is telling us about her new e-book, First Love (Tombstone Treasures series #2, October 2010). She has offered a copy of her e-book to one lucky commenter. She will also be stopping by throughout the week to answer your questions! So if you have anything you want to ask her, you can include it in your comment for entering the contest. If you are only leaving a question in the comment and not entering the giveaway please say so.

Welcome, Michelle! Tell us a little about yourself.

I'm the author of over a dozen inspirational novels releasing through 2012. I have two wonderful sons who are college freshmen this year and my husband and I celebrated twenty years of marriage this past August. I love to read and write stories with real life situations. My new motto pertains to Healing Hearts, which is my new series releasing in February. It seems to be a theme with all of my books, so I have decided to take that and build on it so people will associate my stories with healing rather than with edginess.

Tell us about your salvation experience.
I thought I was a Christian when I was a teenager, but I was merely religious. It was impossible for me to not sin, so I knew something was wrong. When I was walking down the street one day, alone, and meditating on Romans 8:11-13, I realized for the first time what I was missing and asked Jesus to come into my life and do whatever needed to be done to make me right with Him. When I arrived home after my walk I didn't even have to tell my mother what had happened. She saw the difference in my face, and that confirmed that what happened in my heart that day was real. My relationship from that point on became a personal one with Jesus Christ, and I was no longer mystified as to why I didn't feel close to God when it seemed like I was doing everything right (except until I was saved I couldn't say no to temptation. That all changed when I met Jesus personally.) Now it's not to say that I never sinned after that, but I was no longer powerless to overcome it. I think that's why I write themes in my books about people falling and then being redeemed in a way that only Jesus can do.

Are you:

A spontaneous writer or a scheduled writer?
Totally spontaneous.

Stubborn, or compliant?
More compliant than stubborn. Depends on the situation. If I'm protecting someone I love, I'm like a Pit Bull. If it doesn't matter, I give in for the sake of peace.

Organized or completely chaotic?
Pretty organized. I'm more OCD than laid back. But I'm not neurotic.

How do you handle disasters/BIG problems? Do you have a funny or interesting story showcasing how you handle them?
Depends on the kind of disaster it is. When the kids would get hurt when they will little (like falling down and scraping their knees) if there was any blood involved, Daddy would have to bandage them up. I am a wimp when it comes to blood, so I will either shiver or stare with my mouth gaping. It's not pretty. Just about anything else I can handle fine. Give me an infected ingrown toenail to cure (not mine) and I'm fine with it. But paper cut on a finger? I'm a mess. :)

In your opinion, what is your best trait? What is your worst?
My best trait is probably the fact that when I love someone I tend to overlook dumb stuff that they do and extend a lot of grace. (My husband and kids love that about me and tell me as much.) I am not easily offended and most things roll right off of me because I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt. However, if you personally attack me and it's obvious, my hackles come up and then it's hard for me not to get angry and attack back. Fortunately that is not a frequent occurrence in my life. I would rather ignore an issue and slip quietly away than deal with it if there would be a lot of fallout as a result. Stirring the pot is not something I like to do unless it's to protect someone who is vulnerable or to expose something that is immoral and wrong, and thus shouldn't be ignored. Most times I figure the issue is between the offender and God and so I leave it to Him to deal with.

Tell us something surprising about yourself that readers may not know.
I mentioned in another interview that my mother was a nun. About six months after she left the convent she met my dad. They married, of course, and that's the best thing that ever happened to me.

If you compared your writing style to any other Christian Fiction author, who would it be? Also, how would you rate the romance in your books?
I would have to say that I think I write like several historical authors in the area of romantic tension (but I don't write historical fiction) such as Julie Lessman, Deanne Gist, and Marylu Tyndall. Contemporary authors who remind me of my style when I read their books are Denise Hunter and Lisa Samson. I would have to honestly say that because I like to delve deeper into emotional and sexual tension and I always have flawed heroes and heroines, that my books tend to drift toward the PG realm and several even hit rated PG-13, but only because of subject matter. Mostly I am in the PG realm.

What are you working on now or going to write next?
I am writing the sequel to First Love to finish out the three book series.

How can readers get in contact with you?

http://www.michellesutton.net/

http://edgyinspirationalauthor.blogspot.com/

http://healingheartstheseries.blogspot.com/

michelle@michellesutton.net

Book blurb:

Josiah and Tara had enjoyed acting in their high school plays. They had also been each other's first lover... in fact; most of the time they'd spent together had been in Tara's bed. When Josiah became a Christian, he left Tara to go to college and didn't look back.

Four years later, Josiah is back in town when his father has a near-fatal heart attack. When they meet up again they realize how much their separation had hurt each of them. But now Tara is a Christian and is trying to live a life that is pleasing to God.

Josiah wants Tara back, but neither knows how to relate to each other without the physical intimacy they once shared. They are determined to do things right this time, but find it more challenging than they'd anticipated.

Who would you pick to play the lead roles if this book was made into a movie?

For the character Tara I would have Miley Cyrus and the hero would be Chris Pine









Do you have a link to a place to read the first chapter or an excerpt of this book?
http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-112/Tombstone-Treasures-First-Love/Detail.bok

~~~~~

*This giveaway is open to anyone*

Okay readers, here is your chance to win First Love!

TO ENTER:

*Leave a comment with your name and email address (so I can contact you if you win). The comment is mandatory. You will not be entered unless you leave a comment AND your email address.

*If you leave a comment you will be entered unless you specify that you would not like to be entered.

*Here are the ways to get entries:

(First entry) The mandatory comment saying you would like to be entered with your email address.

+1 Become one of my followers OR subscribe to my blog by email.

Read and leave a comment on one or more of my recent book reviews.
+2 The Perfect Blend
+2 First Love

**You can earn a total of 6 entries if you do all of the above entry options. Make sure to tell me in your entry comment on this post which of the things you did to get extra entries.**

*The contest will run from today (October 15) until 6:00 CST on Thursday (October 21). I will announce the winner that night. The winner is always randomly drawn. I will contact the winner either directly after choosing him/her or on Friday the 22nd, and then that person will have one week to reply. If the winner doesn't reply within that time period, I will pick a new winner.

Good luck! Thanks for visiting.

First Love by Michelle Sutton ~ 4 stars

First Love

Michelle Sutton

Tombstone Treasures series #2

Desert Breeze Publishing

About the book:

Josiah and Tara had enjoyed acting in their high school plays. They had also been each others' first lover... in fact; most of the time they'd spent together had been in Tara's bed. When Josiah became a Christian, he left Tara to go to college and didn't look back.

Four years later, Josiah is back in town when his father has a near-fatal heart attack. When they meet up again they realize how much their separation had hurt each of them. But now Tara is a Christian and is trying to live a life that is pleasing to God.

Josiah wants Tara back, but neither knows how to relate to each other without the physical intimacy they once shared. They are determined to do things right this time, but find it more challenging than they'd anticipated.

My review:
*Since my review copy was an ARC, some of the things mentioned in my review might not be the same as in the final version.*

First, I’m just going to say that I loved the subject that Michelle dealt with in this book. It is about two teens who had sex outside of marriage, then broke up. Later, they meet and are both Christians who want to renew their relationship, except this time do everything God’s way. I thought Michelle did a great job of portraying their struggle to stay pure and honor God with their relationship. To me, reading the book was kind of like hearing about some friends of mine who kept messing up, and I felt like I wanted to help them understand it and stay strong but couldn’t.

Some of the dialogue could be changed to follow more logical patterns. (Such as characters saying seemingly random things to make the dialogue go in a new direction.) But, that was pretty minor and could easily be fixed. For the most part, the character’s emotions were realistically done and there were only a few places where I felt like an emotion would come up that wasn’t warranted by the situation. However, that was pretty minor as well.

All in all, I really liked this book and its message about purity in relationships. It gave me some stuff to think about in terms of relationships and boundaries when dating. (Just a warning though, due to the subject matter and writing style of the author, there are some steamy scenes between the characters. I would not recommend this to younger teens.)

Michelle Sutton ~ Interview + Giveaway!

Today, author Michelle Sutton is telling us about her new e-book, First Impressions. She has offered to send a copy to one lucky commenter, so keep reading to find out more info about this great book! **Note: If you don't have an e-reader, don't worry! You can read this book on your computer using Adobe.**

Welcome, Michelle! Tell us a little about yourself.

I'm an author and mother of two teen boys, 18 and 16 respectively. I've been married almost 20 years and have written about 13 books and started many others. I love to read and especially love to write. When I'm not doing those things I'm blogging and writing book reviews.

How long have you been writing?
I started writing in August 2003.

If you compared your writing style to any other Christian Fiction author, who would it be? Also, how would you rate the romance in your books?
Um, well, eh… Okay, I write PG-13 + Christian fiction. Lots of tension and kissing. I can't think of anyone I write a lot like in the Christian fiction realm except maybe Karen Kingsbury when it comes to drama. I don't write sweet romances, but I do like a heavy romance with deep spiritual lessons and themes.

In your own words tell us a little about First Impressions.
First Impressions is the first of three e-books in my Tombstone Treasures series. I have a cute video on youtube and my website that gives you a snapshot of the story.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5qq1n0LfKI

Blurb:

Sammie Carpenter understands how a uniform influences behavior. Wearing her Army fatigues puts her in the mindset of a soldier and donning her Class-A Uniform always helps her shift into Captain Mode. So what harm could come from her dressing like a saloon girl and strutting through the streets of Tombstone? She didn't know how to flirt to save her life, and she wasn't getting any younger.

When she met the lonesome stud cowboy, Jimmy, she knew he was the one. So why was their communication always so awkward? Couldn't he see that she was interested in him? No matter how hard she tried to win him over, she couldn't seem to get him to see past his first impression of her. But Sammie didn't give up easily. Somehow she would make him see that they were meant to be together, but how can she do that when all of her plans keep falling apart?

Read my review HERE.

What made you want to write this story?
This was actually the first story I ever wrote. Silly me, but I thought Love Inspired would want it. I had no clue about their rules back then. At any rate, I'd visited Tombstone during one of their Helldorado Days celebrations and thought about the people who acted different parts and how fun it would be to write a romantic story about their lives outside of Tombstone.

What research did you have to do for this book?
The research was easy. My oldest son is graduating from Tombstone High School so I have access to the town at any time. I took all of the pictures for both of my book video trailers with my camera phone.

Who would you pick to play the lead roles if this book was made into a movie?

I'd have Jessica Simpson play Sammie because she has the body for it and the pretty brown eyes. Plus, she has the vixen look.

And Chace Crawford would star as Jimmy. He's got that wholesome smile and the right features.

What are you working on now or going to write next?

I'm am wrapping up the sequel to Danger at the Door and it's called In Plain Sight and releases in April 2010.

How can readers get in contact with you?
Go to my website www.michellesutton.net to find out more or write to me at michelle@michellesutton.net

What are you currently reading?
In the Arms of Immortals by Ginger Garrett.

Tell us something surprising about yourself that readers may not know.
My mother was a nun before she met my father.

If you could be any animal, which would you choose? Why?
Probably a puppy because I'm always into something.

FAVORITES:
TV show, and/or movie?
I don't watch TV much so I'd say my favorite movie is Charlotte Gray.

Place to go on vacation?
I like beaches. Anything with beautiful landscaping.

Book this year or month? Why?
I've read about a hundred books. That's a tough question. The last book I read and loved was Fools Rush In by Janice Thompson.

Do you have a link to a place to read the first chapter of this book?
Nope. But there is an excerpt on this page…

http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-53/%3Ci%3ETombstone-Treasures-Book-One-cln-%3C-fdsh-i%3E/Detail.bok

First Impressions releases today!

~~~~~

**This giveaway is open to any country**

Okay readers, here is your chance to win a copy of Michelle Sutton's new e-book, First Impressions!

To enter:
*Leave a comment with your name and email address (so I can contact you if you win).

*Please specify that you want to be included in the contest!

*If you want an extra entry, become one of my followers.

*The comment is mandatory. (Please, say in the comment if you are a follower!! It makes my job easier when you do.) You will not be entered unless you leave a comment. If you are already a follower, and then you leave a comment, you will still get two entries in the contest.

*The contest will run from today (Jan. 1) until 10:30 CST on Thursday (Jan. 7). I will announce the winner that night. The winner is always randomly drawn. I will contact the winner on Friday the 8th, and then that person will have one week to reply. If the winner doesn't reply within that time period, I will pick a new winner.

Good luck! Thanks for visiting.

First Impressions by Michelle Sutton ~ 5/5 stars + Favorite

First Impressions

Michelle Sutton

Tombstone Treasures, #1

Desert Breeze Publishing

*E-Book*

About the book:

Sammie Carpenter understands how a uniform influences behavior. Wearing her Army fatigues puts her in the mindset of a soldier and donning her Class-A Uniform always helps her shift into Captain Mode. So what harm could come from her dressing like a saloon girl and strutting through the streets of Tombstone? She didn't know how to flirt to save her life, and she wasn't getting any younger.

When she met the lonesome stud cowboy, Jimmy, she knew he was the one. So why was their communication always so awkward? Couldn't he see that she was interested in him? No matter how hard she tried to win him over, she couldn't seem to get him to see past his first impression of her. But Sammie didn't give up easily. Somehow she would make him see that they were meant to be together, but how can she do that when all of her plans keep falling apart?

My review:

First of all, I want to say that this is definitely for mature teens and up. This is very steamy and not to be read by younger people. But, the message in this book is priceless. First Impressions so completely stresses the importance of handling relationships God’s way that it will make you examine yourself and your walk with the Lord. Michelle is one of those authors that really touches you because she understands the importance of being real. Yes, the book is fiction and fun to read, but it deals with real issues that are usually not addressed in such a straight-forward, understandable way. There are consequences for doing things our way instead of God’s. Not because He gets angry and decides to ruin our life since we didn’t do what He told us to, but because God’s way is best. He created us and He knows how we work. When we follow His guidelines, it keeps us from ruining our own lives. I loved this book and think that Sutton is just getting better and better as a writer. I look forward to seeing the amazing ways that God will continue to use her writing to reach people.

**Come back this Friday when Michelle Sutton will be giving away a copy of this e-book**