My Schedule

Greetings dear blog readers!

I won't be posting much during the next month, so I wanted to leave a schedule of where I'll be. IF I did it correctly, my blog will post the live video feed once we start the Fantasy Fiction tour on October 3rd, and you can check in here to view our book signings and speaking events.

In the meantime, here's what I'm up to.

Sept. 13- speak to Southwest Christian Church of the Nazarene women's luncheon
Sept. 16 - 7-8 pm booksigning at Northwestern Bookstore, Edina, MN
Sept. 19 - teach ("Healthy Habits of the Writer - Spiritual/Emotional") at American Christian Fiction Conference, Bloomington, MN
Sept. 20 - teach ("Healthy Habits of the Writer - Professional") at ACFW
Sept. 20 - 1-3 pm multi-author book event at Mall of America & panel discussion on fantasy genre
Sept. 20 - 7:30 pm Book of the Year Awards (three of my titles are finalists)
Sept. 23 - speak at Gethsemane Lutheran Church, Hopkins, MN
Oct. 3 - 1-3pm Mennonite Education Institute, Abbotsford, BC, Canada
Oct. 3 - 4-6 Meet the author dinner, BC Canada
Oct. 3 6:30-8:30 - speaking event, BC Canada
Oct. 3 8:30-10 - book signing, BC Canada
Oct. 4 noon - TBN interview, Seattle Washington
Oct. 4 3-5 - Harvest Logos Bookstore, Seattle, WA
Oct. 4 6:30-8:30 - Salt Shaker bookstore, Enumclaw, WA
Oct. 5 - lunch with readers, Portland, OR
Oct. 5 - 6-8 pm Evangel Family Bookstore, Medford, OR
Oct. 6 - 1:30-2:30 Trinity Christian School, Sacramento, CA
Oct. 6 - 6pm-8pm Barnes and Noble, Sacramento, CA
Oct. 7 - 11am-noon - Children's Hospital, Madera, CA
Oct. 7 - 3-4 pm FresnoREAD charity event, Fresno, CA
Oct. 7 - 6-8pm Berean Christian Stores, Fresno, CA
Oct. 8 - 9am -3pm Reedley High School events, Reedley, CA
Oct. 8 - 6-8pm Cultural Arts Night, Reedley, CA
Oct. 9 - 9-11 am St. Genevieve High School, Panorama City, CA
Oct. 9 - 1-2:30 pm Bethany Christian School, Sierra Madre, CA
Oct. 9 - 5-7 pm Valley Book & Bible Bookstore, Van Nuys, CA
Oct. 10 - 8:50am-1pm Village Christian Schools, Sun Valley, CA
Oct. 10 - 2-4pm West Covina Christian School, West Covina, CA
Oct. 10 - 7-9pm Calvary Chapel Church, Huntington Beach, CA
Oct. 11 - 11am-1pm Library Event to be confirmed
Oct. 11 - 2-4 pm Barnes and Noble, San Diego, CA
Oct. 11 - evening event TBA, San Diego, CA
Oct. 20 - Crown College, St. Bonifacius, MN
Nov. 6 - CAN retreat, Bloomington, MN
Nov. 7 - 7pm Northwestern Bookstore Booksigning, Maple Grove, MN
Nov. 8 - 9am - Panel discussion, National Church Library Conference
Nov. 8 - 2:15 - Class on Book Groups for NCLA conference
Nov. 20 - MN Library Association - speaking on "Genres in Christian Fiction"

I hope to see many of you at these various events.

May I humbly ask for some prayer? This schedule would be tough on an Olympian, and I'm still recovering from some serious health issues. I KNOW it looks crazy. All I can say is that when we began planning this west coast book store, God continued to impress on my heart that I should be part of it again. So I know I can trust Him to protect me. But I do value your prayers!

Thank you so much!

Huge blessings to you, in the name of our Lord who is our Shepherd, our Healer, our Sustainer, and our mighty Deliverer!

His, Sharon Hinck

Fantasy Fiction Book Tour - 2008

I'm getting SO excited about hanging out with seven other wonderful Christian fantasy authors! October 3-12, we'll be traveling from Canada through Seattle, Portland, down the west coast to the L.A. area and finishing in San Diego.

Here's a taste of the fun we'll be having!



Hope to see you there!

Sharon Hinck
Motiv8 Fantasy Fiction Tour 2008

A Day of Vacation

After the busy couple of days of traveling to talk about Stepping Into Sunlight, Ted and I spent a day relaxing before heading home.

The first photo shows a ridge we climbed in a state park near Wisconsin Dells. It felt good to work our muscles a little after all the hours in the car, and the scenery fed our souls.

While up on the ridge, we watched some eagles, and captured this one rare shot from overhead. I think this is the first time I've gotten a picture of a soaring eagle while looking down from above.


We also found a monastery not far from the Dells that had the Stations of the Cross in a wooded setting. We found it and walked quietly along the path, pausing to read aloud the scripture verses and prayerful liturgy at each stop. With a backdrop of tall pines, lush ferns, nearby creek, and solitude, it was a very moving and strengthening experience.

As I pondered the cross that Jesus was willing to carry for me, I prayed for the courage to bear my own little crosses in life with more strength, submission, and gratitude.

Have you ever walked along a trail and felt like the journey was a time of prayer?

I'm so glad that God has put the beauty of mountains, oceans, trees, rivers, flowers and deserts into this world and continues to allow us to meet Him in all those places . . . as well as in cathedrals, churches . . . and our own living rooms.

Blessings!
Sharon

P.S. - if you haven't found it yet, be sure to check out the Penny's Project blog, where you can join Penny Sullivan (the character in Stepping Into Sunlight) as she seeks to do a small step of kindness for a new person each day.

Stops #9 & #10 - Sharon and Ted's Excellent Adventure

One of the fun things about store visits, was that I spotted many of my friends. T.L. Higley was everywhere – several copies deep with her new book. Katie Cushman was on some key front tables, as was Robin Parrish. Sherri Sand had shelf space with her debut novel at almost every store. Donita K. Paul had long rows of all her dragon books, and Susan May Warren was prominently featured in most of the stores—often on the end of the row. Those are just a few of the examples that had me smiling.

After hours of traffic around Chicago, we stopped in Elgin for one of our last two store visits.

The manager, Kerrie Vujnovich, of the Family Christian in Elgin greeted us with a huge grin and thanked me for coming in. She shared her enthusiasm for the new store’s growth, in spite of challenges of the economy or competing stores. She described herself as an avid reader, and was delighted to get signed book-plates and bookmarks from me. She said there are some fiction readers on her staff who would be thrilled. I felt very blessed to be wrapping up my store visits with this extra-positive experience. Please stop in and visit her!

With one last bag of goodies to deliver, we stopped in at an independent bookstore in Janesville, WI, called BookWorld. A cozy seating area is surrounded by loads of shelves with an eclectic mix of genres. I found quite a bit of Christian fiction (Jan Karon, Bev Lewis, Jerry Jenkins) intermingled with all the other fiction. It was fun to see these voices side-by-side with various NYTime bestsellers. The young clerk told me how much she loves working among books. We both agreed that books are like friends—and spending time in a bookstore is a dream job.

Feeling like I’d done all I could to let a few more retailers know about my books, and happy that I’d offered a bit of gratitude and encouragement for all their efforts, Ted and I headed to KFC for a well-earned supper.

The next day we did a little hiking in Wisconsin. I'll share some photos from our downtime next.

Blessings!
Sharon

Stops #5 & #6 - Sharon & Ted's Excellent Adventure

After the television show taping, Ted and I headed to the South Bend, Indiana, Family Christian Store. Jacqueline Johnson was so fun and hugely encouraging to me. If you live anywhere near, be sure to stop in and see her. They had the largest stock of my books I’d found so far.

There I met up with Kelly, a teacher, writer, and fan of Christian speculative fiction. She'd heard I was going to be in the area and wanted to meet. That's Jacqueline on the left, me in the middle, and Kelly on the right in the beautiful Family Christian store.


Then it was time to hit the road again. Next stop, Family Christian Store in Mishawaka, Indiana. Marie kindly took time to visit with me. She showed me to the books by me that they had on the shelf, and had me sign the copies. I left bookmarks and autographed bookplates there, too, so if you live near Mishawaka, stop in and ask about them.

Reports on more of my ten stops tomorrow!
His,
Sharon

Interview on The Harvest Show

If you've been following my blog, I've been posting about my road trip to South Bend and the great bookstores I visited along the way (which I'll continue with tomorrow). The purpose of the trip was for an interview with The Harvest Show on Friday, August 1, 2008.

Friday morning I was excited to head to the studio. We'd spent about twelve hours on the road the day before, so even after two cups of extra-strength English Breakfast tea, I wasn’t sure I was capable of speaking coherently, but we prayed for God to guide my words.

We found the LeSEA studio and had fun learning about their international broadcast ministry. We sat in the studio while they taped the live show. Because they had some unexpected extra features, they decided to tape my interview after the show, and it will air on August 7th. That was nice, because I had a chance to watch the show, and get to know more about the co-hosts.

Kelly Morgan and Chuck Freeby were as easy to talk to as old friends. At one point, I almost referred to something Chuck had said in a devotional thought during the live show…then I remembered that I couldn’t reference it because my interview would air a week later! Eeek! I caught myself just in time. Ted said it went well, but of course once it was over, I thought of things I wished I’d said. Still, I was able to share my passion for Christian arts, and for the new book.

Here I am on the set of The Harvest show with Chuck and Kelly. Kelly is holding a copy of Stepping Into Sunlight.

During the taping of the live show that day, one of the staff read some email prayer requests from viewers struggling with depression and anxiety, and it reaffirmed to me how many people will be encouraged by this new novel.

I'm so excited for its release, and praying God accomplishes His purposes with this story.

Blessings!
Sharon

Stops #3 & #4 - Sharon & Ted's Excellent Adventure

Buffeted by some strong wind gusts, and racing ahead of black thunderclouds, we pulled into Rockford, Illinois and stopped at a Borders store. We met a manager, Mike, who talked about some of the books that have been doing well (like Stephanie Myers' books). He also shared how well religious fiction does for them, and we had a nice chat.

We continued toward Chicago and reached the outskirts around 2:30, but even at that time of day, got caught in hours of bumper-to-bumper traffic. We made it to the LifeWay Christian store by Moody Bible Institute, and Ted drove around the block while I went in to meet the staff. Audrey, the assistant manager, showed me her fiction section and was very warm and welcoming, as were Hector and Manny. I discovered we had a lot in common. When I worked at a Christian bookstore, years ago, all my paychecks went straight back into buying things from the store. ☺

Audrey said that keeping the store thriving is a challenge. They can't compete with online prices, or Walmart. But they see their work as a ministry, and care about relationships with their customers.

If you are in the Chicago area, you’ll love the warm welcome of the staff at the LifeWay store. I left plenty of bookmarks with them, and signed bookplates for the upcoming release of Stepping Into Sunlight.

Blessings!
Sharon Hinck

The Secret Life of Becky Miller (2007 ACFW Book of the Year - 2nd place, Lit category)
Renovating Becky Miller (2008 Audie Award Finalist, ACFW BOTY finalist)
The Restorer (2008 Christy Award Finalist, ACFW BOTY finalist)
The Restorer's Son (Romantic Times 4.5 stars, Reviewer's Choice Award - Road to Romance, ACFW BOTY finalist)
New Releases:
The Restorer's Journey
Symphony of Secrets
Coming Soon:
Stepping Into Sunlight

Stop #2 - Sharon & Ted's Excellent Adventure

Our second stop on Thursday, July 31, was nearby, at a Barnes & Noble in Madison, Wisconsin.

Amy Rabe, one of the managers, was happy to chat with us. She shared that while sales are going up and down in other categories, religious fiction continues to grow. She was warm and helpful, so if you have a chance to visit the store, be sure to look for her.

Two bookstores in a row. Two gracious managers named Amy. I realized later I should have told them that the heroine in Symphony of Secrets is named Amy!

We continued driving toward Rockford, Illinois when things began blowing across the freeway. We turned on the radio to hear there were severe thunderstorm warnings. The skies got dark but we kept going. We were hoping to get past Chicago before rush hour.

A report on more stops as well as the television interview coming up next!

And stop by Faithchicks where I'm blogging today.

Blessings!
Sharon Hinck

The Secret Life of Becky Miller (2007 ACFW Book of the Year - 2nd place, Lit category)
Renovating Becky Miller (2008 Audie Award Finalist, ACFW BOTY finalist)
The Restorer (2008 Christy Award Finalist, ACFW BOTY finalist)
The Restorer's Son (Romantic Times 4.5 stars, Reviewer's Choice Award - Road to Romance, ACFW BOTY finalist)
New Releases:
The Restorer's Journey
Symphony of Secrets
Coming Soon:
Stepping Into Sunlight

Stop #1 -Sharon & Ted's Excellent Adventure

Thursday July 31st, Ted and I hit the road at daybreak heading from Minneapolis to South Bend so I could do a television interview.

We pulled off the freeway occasionally looking for bookstores – just so I could pop in and say hello to retailers who make my job possible. We saw lots of lovely little towns, but not many bookstores. However, we kept seeing the word “book” as in “Scrapbook.” As Ted put it, “Scrapbooking is alive and well in rural Wisconsin.”

Eventually, with a combination of Mapquest, my daughter's help from home using Google, and a little serendipity, we found bookstores and managed to visit ten different stores on the way to South Bend and back. For the next several days, I’ll feature some of the stores I visited and the great managers I met.

Our first live contact was a Family Christian Store in Madison, WI. The very gracious Amy Oleszek gave me a warm welcome. She showed me the fiction shelves, which had some of my books (hooray!) I asked how the store has been doing, since so many retailers are struggling these days. She said that sales were down a little last winter, and as she prayed about it, she resolved to trust that God is in control. She also began to come in early and walk through the store praying over it. It’s been doing better recently, and she's continuing to trust God. I loved her example of committed service and quiet faith.

The store was beautiful, and I told her that I pray for Christian bookstores often because I know they are more than just stores, but also a place of ministry. Amy agreed. She feels called to be there to answer questions, help people find books they need, and pray for her customers. She also made my day by telling me that their fiction section has been strong.

So if you’re in the Madison, WI area, be sure to stop by and say hello to Amy. I left some bookmarks with her for my most recent book and my upcoming book, so ask her if they still have some when you visit her store. ☺

Blessings!
Sharon Hinck

The Secret Life of Becky Miller (2007 ACFW Book of the Year - 2nd place, Lit category)
Renovating Becky Miller (2008 Audie Award Finalist, ACFW BOTY finalist)
The Restorer (2008 Christy Award Finalist, ACFW BOTY finalist)
The Restorer's Son (Romantic Times 4.5 stars, Reviewer's Choice Award - Road to Romance, ACFW BOTY finalist)
New Releases:
The Restorer's Journey
Symphony of Secrets
Coming Soon:
Stepping Into Sunlight

Sharon & Ted's Excellent Road Trip

Readers, writers, book-clubbers, church librarians, friends, and friends-to-be:

If you live in or near Madison, Wisconsin, or South Bend, Indiana, or points in between South Bend and Minneapolis, and would like to meet, please email me.

Ted and I will be taking a road trip next Thursday on our way to my scheduled television interview with "The Harvest Show" on Friday, August 1st. I'm looking forward to chatting about my upcoming novel, Stepping Into Sunlight, but also plan to drop in and thank stores along the way that carry my books.

If you email me through my website contact page and tell me where you live, I can let you know whether I'll be nearby, and at what time. I'd love to meet as many readers in person as I can!

His,
Sharon