Barb Warner Deane's Blog

I'm thrilled to announce that I am very close to being able to reveal the cover of my next Harper's Glen novel, And Then There Was You. I've seen a preliminary draft of the cover and it's beautiful! I can't wait to share it with you.And Then There Was You is the 2nd in my Harper's Glen series of contemporary romantic suspense novels that began with Killing Her Softly. I'm working on book #3 in the series and already have an idea for book #4. But this got me to thinking.Do you like to read multiple books in a series? In this case, there is overlap of characters and they are all set in the same small town. While each story has a distinct story and new central characters, there are continuing themes and familiar faces in each. In the case of And Then There Was You, the main characters are Marnie Edwards and Scott Randall. Scott was introduced in Killing Her Softly. In Book #3, which is yet to be titled, the main male character is Chris Hoy, who was introduced in And Then There Was You.How many of you like to follow the story of a small town, such as Harper's Glen, and connected characters?Personally, I love to go back to a connected location and continuing characters, but have the main focus of each book be different. Many authors does series well. Recently, I read Fredrik Bachman's Beartown and Us Against You, both wonderful books set in his fiction Swedish Beartown with connected characters. Backman is one my favorite authors and I just can't get enough of his books, so I was thrilled to fall in love with Beartown all over again in Us Against You. Of course, I'm a huge fan of the Harry Potter series and could read about those characters over and over. Same goes for J.D. Robb's In Death series. I just wish they make that into a TV series.Once I fall in love with a setting and at least some of the characters of a novel, I'm happy to revisit these old friends with a new story and new characters. I hope you all will enjoy And Then There Was You and be happy to revisit Harper's Glen again and again.

My 2nd novel, Killing Her Softly, was released in audio-book format last week. I'm very excited, as I think audio-books open a world to another category of reader, and the more readers and books in the world, the better. What do you think?I love audio-books and usually have one going at all times, in addition to an e-book on my phone, and even perhaps a paperback or hardcover "paper" book as well. I have a 25-minute commute to work each day, which isn't a lot compared to many people, but I don't want to waste my time listening to random music on the radio, and I detest talk radio, so I almost never drive without an audio-book. In fact, if I don't happen to have a current book I'm listening to, I keep all the Harry Potter audio-books on my Audible account and download the next one to listen to, just in case.Certainly, I have favorite narrators - such as the incredible Jim Dale - but usually I'm there for the story more than the performance. If I can get my monthly book club books in audio, I'm a happy camper. I don't buy them all, as a lot of great audio-books are available for download from my local library on Overdrive. I've heard people say that listening to a book isn't reading it, but I couldn't agree more. For me, the joy and purpose of reading, especially with fiction, is to immerse myself in the story, become emotionally attached to the characters, and live in that world a while. I find it much easier to fully commit to that fictional world if I'm listening to the story than stealing snippets of time when my eyes are not drooping to read for myself.If you haven't tried an audio-book, I strongly recommend you check out your local library and see what's available. If you're a Harry Potter fan, but have never listened to the audio-books, you don't know what you've been missing. Both On The Homefront and Killing Her Softly should be available on Overdrive, if your library has purchased them, as well as on Amazon, Audible, and The Wild Rose Press. I hope you enjoy them.

I have free codes available to anyone who would like to review the audio-book of On The Homefront.Audible has eliminated these free codes for authors not exclusive to them, so these have to go quickly.Anyone interested? Please email me and I'll send you a code, then just review On The Homefront on Amazon, Audible, &/or Goodreads.I hope you enjoy it!Barb

I've decided to start posting about some of the remarkable women of history I find in my research. I will post some here, but many more can be found on my Facebook page as well.Lois Gunden(United States)In 1941, twenty-six year old Lois Gunden, an American French teacher from Goshen, Indiana, came to work with the Mennonite Central Committee in southern France. Far from her home, she would become the rescuer of children of a different nationality, religion and background.Gunden joined the Mennonite organization Secours Mennonite aux Enfants in Lyon, and was sent to establish a children’s home in Canet Plage, on the seaside of Mediterranean. The children’s center became a safe haven for Spanish refugee children as well as for Jewish children, smuggled out of the nearby internment camp of Rivesaltes. One such child was Ginette (Drucker) Kalish (b. 1930), from Paris. In July 1942 Ginette’s father was deported to Auschwitz, but Ginette and her mother managed to hide from the police. They fled to the South of France but were caught on the train, and were eventually taken to Rivesaltes. It was there that Lois Gunden approached Ginette’s mother and pleaded with her to let her take the child out of the camp. The mother was hesitant at first, but when Gunden convinced her that Ginette would be safer under her care, she agreed to part from her child. “At the time I was 12 years old and certainly scared”, Ginette Kalish told Yad Vashem, “but Lois Gunden was kind and passionately determined to take me and these other Jewish children out of Rivesaltes to protect them from harm… I remember Lois Gunden being kind and generous and she made a special effort to integrate us with the other children. None of the other children were told that we were Jewish.”Gunden kept a diary and described her activities, in which she proved great courage, ingenuity and intuition. One morning while the children were out for a walk, a policeman came to the center in order to arrest three of the Jewish children: Louis, Armand and Monique Landesmann. Lois said the children would not return until noon. At noon the policeman appeared again and told Lois to pack up the children's belongings and prepare them for departure. This time Lois said that their clothing were being laundered and would not be dry until late afternoon. All through that day Lois prayed for wisdom and guidance and for the safety of the three children, and the officer never did return. The children were saved.In November 1942 the Germans occupied Southern France. Although she was now an enemy alien, Gunden continued to run the Children’s Center. In January 1943 she was detained by the Germans, only to be released in 1944 in a prisoner exchange. She returned home to Indiana and in 1958 she married a widower, Ernest Clemens. She never had any children of her own, but she gained a step-daughter through her marriage. Lois continued teaching French at Goshen College and Temple University, and in addition she ministered in the Mennonite Church.On 27 February 2013 Yad Vashem recognized Lois Gunden as Righteous Among the Nations.

I'm now well into year 2 of my life as a published author. At this time last year, I had sold one book and was working with my editor on preparing it for publication, as well as editing my 2nd book and preparing to send it to my publisher as well. Now I have 2 published novels, including one in audio-book format, have recently sent my third book to my editor, and am researching my 4th. In addition, I've learned a lot, including how much I don't know, about the business of writing, publishing, research, and self-promotion.I mailed my first 2 books off for various reviews and contests and am happy to report that Killing Her Softly is short-listed for the CLUE Book Awards. The CLUE Book Awards recognizes emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Thrillers, Suspense, & Investigative Fiction. The CLUE Book Awards is a division of Chanticleer International Novel Writing Competitions. https://www.chantireviews.com/2018/02... lucky to know several well-known authors from when I ran my on-line book store, Barb's All Romance Book Store, and my years in the Romance Writers of America association. I'm grateful that many of them have offered cover quotes/reviews for both of my books and that On The Homefront has been selected to be reviewed on our Discovering Diamonds Review. Bloghttps://discoveringdiamonds.blogspot.... I have to say, in the course of publicizing On The Homefront, I've discovered that I truly enjoy the library programs I've been presenting on Women of WWII: On the Front Lines & the Home Front. I've been to 20 programs since August, some for libraries, some for women's groups, and some were book clubs. Book clubs are fun, because these are women who have read On The Homefront already and have questions and a discussion about it. But the library programs, even if only a few people show up, are a lot of fun. I don't talk about my books very much, it's about the roles American women took on in WWII. Which is why I have 10 more programs scheduled between now and April 1 - March is National Women's History Month.While I often sell copies of one or both of my books at the end of the program, sometimes I don't. That's okay. I'm enjoying presenting the program enough, and usually getting paid to do so, that it's a win for me. And, as I am researching and writing my 2nd WWII-era historical, also set in the U.S., I know that I can continue to develop the program and keep presenting it as long as there are libraries and groups out there that are interested.Maybe there's a little more of my family's teaching gene in me than I've ever thought there was!

At some point in the editing process, my publisher, The Wild Rose Press, notified all of the authors that we had the option of having our books turned into audio books. Being a lover of the spoken word myself, I jumped at the chance to have two audio books published.Given that On The Homefront was released before Killing Her Softly, it is proceeding through the audio book process first. I received auditions from several narrators and fell in love with the British accent of one of the auditions, at least for Helen's voice. On The Homefront is told in the alternating first person point of view of three women; Helen is British and Lilly and Ruth are Americans. I requested the narrator redo the audition in an American accent, so I could get a feel for how that would sound. She graciously complied and I chose her to be the narrator.It was several weeks between choosing the narrator and getting the first segment of recording to review. Luckily, during that time, I got four auditions for narrators on Killing Her Softly and chose the narrator for that book as well. Killing Her Softly is a contemporary romantic suspense and focuses on a battered woman, so I decided I didn't want a man to narrate that story. It just didn't feel right to me.When I got the first recording to analyze for On The Homefront, I found a couple of words that the narrator said in her American accent that still sounded too British for Lilly or Ruth. For instance, the word "adult." She pronounced them with the emphasis on the first syllable, A-dult, whereas Americans usually put the emphasis on the 2nd syllable. Also the word "Mom;" she pronounced it with the British sound of Mum instead of the American flat Mom sound. But other than that, I really liked the way it was coming together.I just finished listening to the prologue and first 5 chapters for further critique and am really enjoying having my book come to life in a new way as an audio book. I mean, it's great that it's available in e-book and paperback, from The Wild Rose Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble (at least in e-book), and other booksellers, as well as in libraries and on Overdrive. But, there are so many people who enjoy audio books, I'm excited to open my stories up to a new audience as well.And, the process of getting to that point is also exciting. I love that the narrator sent comments to me, through my publisher, of how much she is enjoying the story. I've never met her and probably never will, but I feel a bond with her, as she reads my book. Even though I haven't gotten sample chapters yet from the narrator I chose for Killing Her Softly, I did a Google search recently, looking for pirated copies of my books, and found that the narrator has listed Killing Her Softly on her list of works as in-progress, and again, I felt the connection. It's like there are more people out there now, pulling for me and my books, and it makes me happy.I've waited a long time for a publisher to print one of my books, or in this case, two of them, so I'm trying to enjoy the process as much as possible. Of course, I'm still working on publicizing my books, presenting my Women of WWII program at local libraries and for women's groups, and attending book signings, as well as writing the new book, so it's keeping me pretty busy, along with the day job, but I'm enjoying the ride, nonetheless.

Today is release day for my first published novel - On The Homefront! It is available now on my publisher's website, The Wild Rose Press, and on Amazon, in both ebook and paperback.A few years ago, I uncovered a "book" I wrote in 3rd grade. I drew the pictures, wrote the story, stapled together the notebook paper, and made it all into a book about being a Brownie Girl Scout. I had fun sharing this book with my daughters' Girl Scout troops, but didn't really think more about it.I also have a binder full of the poems and short stories I wrote in high school. They aren't very good, but I really liked writing and, although I knew it wasn't the practical career choice my parents wanted for me, I hoped to be able to somehow incorporate it into my life.Now, just weeks before my 56th birthday, I am finally a published author. On The Homefront is not the first book I've ever written; it's more like the fourth or fifth book I've ever completed, although I have several more partially-completed works in my files.  But, On The Homefront is special to me, not just because it's the first one to be published. When we lived in Germany, we had the opportunity to visit Normandy, the beaches of D-Day, and the American Cemetery there. I have always been a fan of history, have been tracing our genealogy for about 35 years now, and read a lot of historical fiction. So, I was really excited when we went to Normandy.The beaches were awe-inspiring, as was the whole area. The pill boxes and gun turrets left by the Germans, the deep bomb craters left behind for 70 years by the bombs our troops dropped in the area, the cliffs that the Allied soldiers had to climb after crossing the beaches. It spoke to me.Then we went to the American Cemetery, with it's row upon row of crisp white crosses and Stars of David headstones, many reading "Here rests in Honored Glory A Comrade in Arms Known But to God." The sun was blindly bright and the blue water of the English Channel sparkled below. I was intrigued when I heard there was only one civilian buried there, one of only four women, and she was an American Red Cross Clubmobile girl - a Doughnut Dolly. The idea captivated me and I started researching.What took years to research and about nine months to form into a book is now available for people to buy, read, and review. Crazy. I couldn't be happier that a lifelong dream has come true today. But it still feels a little unreal. Thank you to everyone who has read bits of this book, or my other ones, to help me find just the right tone and plot and to everyone who reviewed it, bought it, borrowed it, read it, and asked me about it. I am eternally grateful and very blessed and I hope everyone finds something in the book that speaks to them.

Happy July 4th to any Americans reading this post! Now that my first book, On The Homefront, has a definite release date of August, 23, 2017, I'm very happy to report that you can search my name, or book title, on Amazon now and the e-book version will pop up. The e-book version is also listed in the catalog of my publisher, The Wild Rose Press. I'm sure the paperback version will be up soon. The wheel have already started turning to make On The Homefront available in audio-book as well. I have been getting a lot of congratulations from family, friends & colleagues, which is wonderful, but I've also gotten some questions on the process and amount of time it took to write this, my "first" book. So, now that I've seen my name in lights - or the writer's first equivalent, on the Amazon search - I have been giving it some thought.I first started writing in middle school, or maybe before. I wasn't good at penmanship or spelling in the very beginning, so I don't think we kept a lot of my elementary school projects (I was the 4th child, after all). I have one "book" I wrote about being a Girl Scout in about 3rd grade, but that's it. I have a binder, hidden away somewhere, of some stories but mostly poems that I wrote in middle and high school. Nothing noteworthy, to be sure.Along the way, I started getting serious about school and finding a path that would lead to gainful employment, so when I went to college, I majored in Hotel Administration. I found that the subjects that spoke to me most, besides my English classes, were Business Law and the Law of Innkeeping, so I went to law school. I only practiced law for a few years before corporate moves, motherhood, and the expat life took over. I've done a lot of things over the years, but it was 1999 before I found myself at a Romance Writers of America (RWA) convention. I joined the local Windy City RWA chapter and met some wonderful and extremely supportive fellow writers. I found some incredible critique partners and started really dedicating myself to writing. I finished my first novel in 2000, but I can safely report that it is rubbish and will never see the light of day.But, I kept writing, finishing two more novels and starting many more. I served a term as the President of the Windy City RWA, got various jobs, moved to Germany and didn't write (but experienced a LOT), moved back and got busy with growing daughters and a traveling husband. We moved to China without our then grown or college-aged daughters, and started to finally pull together some ideas that had been growing in the back of my mind since visiting the American Cemetery in Normandy in 2007. We moved back to Illinois, I got a job, and dedicated myself once again to researching and writing the historical novel that would become On the Homefront.Through a fiasco with United Airlines, I was unable to accompany my family on our spring break trip to Paris in 2016, so I stayed home that week alone and finished the first draft of On The Homefront. I quickly started editing it , as well as sending it to agents in the hope of finding one who would send this book-of-my-heart off to the big publishing houses. After more rejections that I can remember, I decided to research some small publishing houses and quickly got offers of publication from three of them. Since I had written other types of books as well, and hoped to one day get some of them published, or at least write in other genres, I chose The Wild Rose Press, because they have such a broad catalog of published novels. My book was assigned to Nan Swanson, my new editor.I signed with The Wild Rose Press at Thanksgiving of 2016 and On The Homefront is being published on August 23, 2017 - so not quite a year. After the first sale, I pulled out one of the manuscripts I'd completed around 2004 or 2005, dusted it off, and edited it. I contacted Nan and asked if I could submit my romantic suspense, Killing Her Softly. Nan directed me to the right editorial staff and I found my new editor, Rachel Kelly, who offered me a contract on Killing Her Softly in March of this year and I anticipate that it will be released in September or October - everything done except getting the release date. This is the most exciting time of my writing life, and ranks pretty high up in my overall life thrills with meeting my husband, having my daughters, and some of our wonderful travel adventures as a family. I still have the incredible support of my wonderful critique group from the Windy City RWA, and am still a member of RWA, although part of the Published Author Network, as well as the Windy City and Chicago-North chapters, and the Historical Writers of America. Writers support each other in a way that may not happen in other professions, but is wonderful. I also have the total support and encouragement of my family, both my husband and daughters, as well as my extended family and friends who are as close as, plus the wonderful people I've come to know from all over the world over the years. Thank you to all of you - you have helped make this possible. It's been a long time coming, but was so worth it. :)

Hi, all- I'm excited to announce my new website is up and running: http://www.barbwarnerdeane.com Please check it out and learn more about On The Homefront, my first published novel which is due out from The Wild Rose Press in Summer, 2017.  You can also read about the American Red Cross Clubmobiles and the brave women, the "Doughnut Dollies," who drove those Clubmobiles across Europe, Asia, and all fronts of World War II, serving our troops. I have a separate page entitled "Feisty Women" which highlights women who have made a difference in history, whether they are well known or not. If you have a recommendation of a Feisty Woman that you'd like me to feature, please send the information to me via the Contact Me page on my website. I'm always looking for inspiring stories about remarkable women (and girls). Thank you for your interest in my page, my book, and the history of feisty women.

Hi, all - My name is Barb Warner Deane and I am, among other things, an author of a WWII- era Historical, Women's Fiction novel entitled On The Homefront which is coming soon from The Wild Rose Press. I've been writing for more than 15 years, all my life, actually, so I'm very excited to have sold a book and am eagerly awaiting the chance to hold the published novel in my hands, hopefully in Summer, 2017.On The Homefront is a story about three strong-willed women on the U.S. home front during World War II. The women, Lilly, Ruth, and Helen, live on a family farm in a small town in Upstate New York. World War II affected everyone, whether or not they went to the front lines, in a way that no military action since has. Rationing, making do, getting by, and chipping in was a way of life, and the responsibilities of life fell to the women who were left behind when their husbands, sons, brothers, and fathers went off to war. Lilly and Helen take jobs in an aircraft engine company ala "Rosie the Riveter." Ruth joins the American Red Cross Clubmobile program, in which 25-35 year old college-educated women joined the Red Cross and went to the front lines to drive Army trucks that had been converted to a Club on wheels. In addition to serving coffee and doughnuts to the troops, the women danced, wrote and read letters, and boosted morale, reminding the men why they were fighting so far from home. I will be updating my blog on a regular basis and will let you know when the cover art comes out, release day is set, and what my appearance schedule will be for book signings and talks. I'm busy at work on my next book and can't wait to share my writer's journey with you.   Thanks for visiting my blog! Barb