Marian P. Merritt - Lagniappe: August 2016

Good Monday Morning Readers!

Today, Julie Arduini visits
Lagniappe to discuss her latest release, Entagled.

Welcome, Julie!

Tell us a little about ENTANGLED.

ENTANGLED is the second release in my Surrendering Time series. This is Carla Rowling’s story, a single mom and sheriff who has been offered all the means to pursue her dreams. She feels so guilty about her past choices and how she was a teenaged mom that she can’t accept the amazing grace she’s been given. Her present choices about her past are causing terrible consequences for her and her loved one’s futures. The series is set in a fictional village in the Adirondack Mountains.

Do you listen to music when you write? If so, what's on your writing playlist these days?

I listen to Pandora, and lately I’ve hit the “Thumbprint” playlist. This takes all the songs I’ve liked and plays them. I have everything from 80’s music, worship, country, electronic music when I work out, and instrumental praise.

What Bible verse speaks to you the most?

Proverbs 3:5-6 is my life verse. No matter what I’m facing, this is the verse that helps me plant one foot in front of the other and KNOW it is going to work out. That God is with me. He truly straightens my path.

Give readers your brand/tagline and share how you came up with it.

My brand is Surrender Issues and Chocolate, and my tagline is “Encouraging you to surrender the good, the bad, and---maybe one day---the chocolate. I truly believe when you surrender everything to Christ, there is freedom. I know from experience some of that He’s asked me to let go of has been good stuff, because He had something better. Some has been bad habits or sin. But I’m human, and there are days I’m not ready to let go and His love is still there. I used to be so addicted to chocolate I ate M&M’s for breakfast. I am much better at that then I was. But completely surrender chocolate? Maybe one day. J

Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?

I don’t search for them. I used to be very tied into what people thought of me. It emotionally crippled me. That had to be one of the biggest surrenders I’ve laid down. Once He set me free, I truly am not attached to people’s opinions. But, I absolutely understand how important reviews are and the time it takes to write one. My work depends on them. I do look for them in marketing, but I can’t allow myself to look every day and see what’s been written. I do have less than amazing reviews, and God helped me so much. What helps me is advice a friend gave me. “Have the heart of a dove and the skin of a rhino.” That set me free, and I hope it does anyone worrying about a bad review.

What can we expect from you in the future?

I’m working on the last book in the series, ENGAGED: Surrendering the Future. Trish Maxwell was the “bad girl” in ENTRUSTED, Book One. This time she’s back in Speculator Falls with no job and a lot of explaining to do. She needs a plan, but isn’t sure if it includes the paramedic who comes to her rescue.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Vacation: Beach or Mountains? Mountains

NCIS or CSI? NCIS

Magazine: Country Living

Y’all or You Guys? You Guys

Women’s Fiction or Romance? Romance

Entangled: Surrendering the Past

Book #2, Surrendering Time Series

“You need to leave me alone. It’s the least you can do.”

Carla Rowling has been given her dream of attending cosmetology school. The gift is so generous she feels unworthy because of choices she made as a teen. The pressure mounts as Carla juggles school, is a single mom, helps her best friend Jenna plan her wedding, spends time with boyfriend Will Marshall, and deals with the fact that her son's father is back in their lives.

Will Marshall is the one Speculator Falls resident everyone can count on. His truck deliveries are reliable. He's the first to help friends like Ben Regan with boat work or be a card partner with Bart Davis. Will's ready to settle down with Carla, loving her is natural. He's bonded with her son, Noah. But when Carla starts cosmetology school, she puts emotional distance between her and Will.

Can Carla release her past and create a future full of highlights, or, will she burn her options worse than a bad perm?

Purchase Link:

Amazon (Kindle and Print): http://www.amazon.com/Entangled-Surrendering-Past-Time/dp/0692713476/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1464881433&sr=1-1&keywords=julie+arduini

Entangled is book #2. Although it can standalone, if you’d like to read Entrusted: Surrendering the Present first, click here: http://www.amazon.com/Entrusted-Surrendering-Present-Time/dp/0692709177?ie=UTF8&qid=&ref_=tmm_pap_swatch_0&sr=

Julie Arduini loves to encourage readers to surrender the good, the bad, and ---maybe one day---the chocolate. She’s the author of the re-release, ENTRUSTED: Surrendering the Present, as well as the sequel, ENTANGLED: Surrendering the Past. She also shared her story in the infertility devotional, A WALK IN THE VALLEY. She blogs every other Wednesday for Christians Read. She resides in Ohio with her husband and two children. Learn more by visiting her at http://juliearduini.com, where she invites readers to subscribe to her monthly newsletter full of resources and giveaway opportunities at JULIE ARDUINI: SURRENDER ISSUES AND CHOCOLATE and the weekly e mail. SUNDAY’S SURRENDER AND CHOCOLATE.

Facebook: http://facebook.com/JulieArduini

Twitter: http://twitter.com/JulieArduini

G+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+JulieArduini/posts

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/JulieArduini

Instagram: http://instagram.com/JulieArduini

Snapchat: @juliearduini

Goodreads: http://goodreads.com/JulieArduini

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Julie-Arduini/e/B00PBKDRSQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1427852247&sr=8-1

Monthly Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/dCFG

Weekly Sunday’s Surrender and Chocolate: http://eepurl.com/bJ5yHP

Surrendered Scribe Media Promotions: (Book release info sent as needed) http://eepurl.com/bXAW0L

Julie, thanks for sharing!

Readers thanks for stopping by Lagniappe.