CAFE: A gathering place. A place of refreshment.

Thirsty for the latest releases in Christian fiction? Ready for a peek into the world of publishing and writing conferences? Hungry for spiritual and real-life nourishment? Pull up a seat; you're in the right place, and I'm so glad you've stopped by.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

CHASING LILACS and Other Fun Stuff

It’s been a while since I’ve talked about the release of my upcoming book, Chasing Lilacs. The truth is, I’m not all that comfortable tooting my own horn. I don’t want people—meaning you, my readers—to grow weary of it before it even hits the shelves. And yet, it’s never far from my mind, so please rejoice with me on these latest updates:

I’ve been blessed by endorsements from several fabulous authors that simply take my breath away. You know who you are, and I thank you.

The ARCs (Advance Reader Copies) have been sent to reviewers. Biting my nails on what might come of that.

The Christian MomLogic Book Club has chosen Chasing Lilacs as its next selection, and will be reading the book in late February (pre-release). Thank you FaithWords for providing ARCs for this group.

The FaithWords Spring/Summer Catalog is out, and the cover art of Chasing Lilacs is on their cover. No words to describe how humbling and exciting that is. Also a terrific write up in the New Release section inside. This somehow makes it seem more real that my book is on the precipice of being out there. My prayer is that it blesses the socks off those who read it.

The book is available for pre-order here and here and also available on Kindle.

Marketing and publicity seems to be the next big thing, and I’ll give you links from time to time on where I’ll be guest blogging. In the meantime, you can follow me on Twitter @ChasingLilacs, stop in and say hi on Facebook, or if you’re new here and want to know more about my book, visit my website.

Now for the fun part:

In honor of Chasing Lilacs being set in 1958, here’s a rundown of what things cost back then:

Car: $2,200
Gasoline: 30 cents/gal
House: $18,000
Bread: 19 cents/loaf
Milk: $1.01/gal
Postage Stamp: 4 cents
Stock Market: 584
Average Annual Salary: $5,500
Minimum Wage: $1.00 per hour

The Ford Edsel was released in 1958, and “Johnny B. Goode” by Chuck Berry was the No. 1 song of the year. This song, though, was the one playing at Sammie Tucker's first dance. I think you'll enjoy it too.



Ah, the good old days . . .

Since most of you probably don’t remember 1958, tell me what childhood year you do remember and what made that year a standout. Can’t wait to hear your answers!

5 comments:

Erica Vetsch said...

The year of my birth, Armstrong stepped on the surface of the moon. :)

So excited for you, Carla. Congratulations on Chasing Lilacs, and I hope you enjoy every second of this ride!

Patti Lacy said...

Actually, in 1958, I was three and remember living on a San Antonio Air Base. For fun, I would stack my father's golf tees!

Blessings,
Patti

carla stewart said...

Erica, I think I was in college then - oh goodness, this makes me feel ancient!

Patti, didn't know you were an Air Force kid. Somehow I can't picture stacking golf tees. Didn't the pointy ends make that difficult? You are a woman of many talents!

Myra Johnson said...

I admit it--I remember 1958. Nothing specific except I was in second grade at Bryan Elementary. I think that's the year I got kicked out of the Christmas choir because my voice didn't blend with the other kids'. Can you tell I'm SOOOO not over that rejection???

Bonnie Way aka the Koala Mom said...

Wow, wish a house still cost $18000. Of course, I don't think I'd like working for $1/hr - I find $10/hr cheap enough!!! Congrats on all the good news; so excited for you!!! I like hearing about it, so keep sharing!