Welcome to the Fall Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt!

If you’ve just discovered the hunt, be sure to start at Stop #1, and collect the clues through all the stops, in order, so you can enter to win one of our top 5 grand prizes!

• The hunt BEGINS on 11/7 at noon MST with Stop #1 at LisaTawnBergren.com.
• Hunt through our loop using Chrome or Firefox as your browser (not Explorer).
• There is NO RUSH to complete the hunt—you have all weekend (until Sunday, 11/10 at midnight MST)! So take your time, reading the unique posts along the way; our hope is that you discover new authors/new books and learn new things about them.
• Submit your entry for the grand prizes by collecting the CLUE on each author’s scavenger hunt post and submitting your answer in the Rafflecopter form at the final stop, back on Lisa’s site. Many authors are offering additional prizes along the way!

Hi! My name is Lynn H. Blackburn and I write romantic suspense with a southern accent.

You can learn more about me and all my books here on my site and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

The best way to stay up to date is by subscribing to my newsletter or hanging out over at my Facebook reader group, The Deep Divers. My most recent novel is One Final Breath, the third and final (sniff!) book in the Dive Team Investigations series. Here’s what it’s about: 

When investigator Gabriel Chavez had his cover blown by an aggressive reporter, the silver lining was being able to rejoin the dive team. The downside? Dive Team Captain Anissa Bell—a woman who both fascinates and frustrates him.

Anissa grew up a missionary kid on an Indonesian island and always planned to return after college. But she remained stateside, determined to solve the case that haunts her—the murder of her best friend and the disappearance of a three-year-old child.

When Anissa’s fractured past collides with Gabe’s investigation into the tragic shooting death of a teenage boy in Lake Porter, they’ll have to put their complicated history with each other aside in order to uncover the identity of a killer. What they’ll discover is that revenge has no statute of limitations.

I’m a Carolina girl and I set the Dive Team Investigations series in the fictional city of Carrington, North Carolina.

WHY I CHOSE A FICTIONAL SETTING

Carrington, North Carolina isn’t real, y’all, but I wish it was! 

One of the reasons I chose a fictional setting for my Dive Team Investigations series was that the city in my mind doesn’t exist! But that’s what makes fictional settings so fantastic. They can be whatever you need them to be. I set Carrington in central North Carolina, roughly in the area between Chatham and Randolph counties. In my mind, I simply squeezed those counties to the sides and put Carrington County and the all-so-important to the story Lake Porter right there in the middle. 

The fictional Lake Porter is modeled off several major lakes in that area of North Carolina including Badin and Jordan, but also three of the lakes of the Upstate of South Carolina—Keowee, Hartwell, and Jocassee. I learned to scuba dive in Keowee and Jocassee and definitely had those lakes in mind when I pictured the diving scenes. Jocassee has multiple dive sites and I can envision the team teaching Dr. Sabrina Fleming (from In Too Deep) to dive there. And the point where Leigh lives in Beneath the Surface—and where the opening scene of One Final Breath occurs—is a version of a real area on Lake Keowee. 

If you want to see some of the images I used to inspire the story scenes, I have Pinterest boards for all three books and I’d love for you to visit me there!

Here’s the Stop #21 Skinny:

If you’re interested, you can order One Final Breath on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ChristianBook.com or at your local bookstore! 

Clue to Write Down: adjectives

Link to Stop #22, the Next Stop on the Loop: Deborah Raney’s site! 

But don’t go just yet!

I’m offering any one of my Dive Team Investigations series books to three entrants.

All you have to do is sign up to get my e-newsletter (top right of my home page) or note that you’re already a subscriber. Additional points to those who join my reader group, The Deep Divers and to those who follow me as an author (@LynnHBlackburn) on Goodreads, Instagram, BookBub, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter! (USA only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Grace and peace,

The post Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt Stop #21 appeared first on Lynn H. Blackburn.

Welcome to the Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt! If you’re just joining us, the hunt begins at www.LisaBergren.com, with Stop #1. If you complete the loop of 26 stops, writing down the clue on each author’s site, you can enter to win all 25 books as well as Amazon gift cards, an iPad and more!

Without further ado, it’s my pleasure to introduce you to my guest for the Scavenger Hunt, Cara Putman.

I was thrilled to join Cara on a panel at ACFW this past September. She is outgoing and kind and possibly the most energetic woman I’ve ever met!

Cara’s romantic legal suspense is gripping–you don’t want to miss it!

Here’s her professional bio: Cara Putman is the award-winning, best-selling author of more than 30 books. Her current novels are ripped from the headlines romantic supsense. You can read first chapters at www.caraputman.com/books.

Here’s the summary of her latest book: 

She had long given up the desire to be loved. Now she only needed to be heard. Jaime Nichols went to law school to find the voice she never had as a child, and her determination to protect girls and women in the path of harm drives her in ways both spoken and unspoken. As Jaime, now a criminal defense attorney, prepares to press charges against someone who wronged her long ago, she must face not only her demons but also the unimaginable forces that protect the powerful man who tore her childhood apart.

You can purchase this book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ChristianBook or your local bookstore.

And here’s her EXCLUSIVE content that you’ll only find in this hunt!

Building Deep Characters

Writing is hard work. To give readers an emotional experience I have to dig deep. I’ll need to cry. I’ll want to chortle. For any emotion to resonate, I have to be willing to go there.

For some books that’s relatively easy. I’m writing a book set in WWII on the home front. There’s rationing. There’s boys going to war. But there’s also dances. And games. And the importance of family.

Then there are the books that require deep things from me. Delayed Justice was one of those books. Jaime Nichols was a character who was shy to make her story known. In Beyond Justice, she said a few snarky lines and gratefully slid into the shadows. In Imperfect Justice, she hinted at darker secrets, but kept her difference. But in Delayed Justice her story erupted. It oozed with pain and angst…and to get her to a point of healing and hope, I had to walk through the pain, too.

That meant I had to research the lingering effects of childhood abuse on adults. I had to explore the trauma’s impacts in emotional and physical ways. I had to talk with survivors and read their stories, so I could honor their experience in the telling of Jaime’s. I also wanted to write the story in a way that conveys hope without triggering those who may have experienced the painful realities.

To do that I balanced Jaime’s journey with her stand-offish cat Simba and a lovable Golden Retriever named Aslan. The two of them provided comic relief and a mirror for the growing friendship between Jaime and Chandler Bolton. The animals also reflect the shifting nature of Jaime’s spiritual journey. I also surrounded Jaime with friends, and made sure she couldn’t escape one. It was impossible for her to continue to hide behind a mask when Caroline is around. We all need friends like that, don’t we?

Thanks for stopping by the hunt! Before you go, make sure you WRITE DOWN THIS CLUE: 

Secret Word: those

Got it down?? Great! Your next stop is #22, Cara Putman’s site!

But before you go, I’d love for you to take a moment to enter the giveaway I’m doing! You can win one of three great prizes!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The post Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt Stop #21 appeared first on Lynn H. Blackburn.

If you’ve just discovered the hunt, be sure to start at Stop #1, and collect the clues through all 30 stops, in order, so you can enter to win one of our top 5 grand prizes!

• The hunt BEGINS on 3/1 at noon MST with Stop #1 at LisaTawnBergren.com.
• Hunt through our loop using Chrome or Firefox as your browser (not Explorer).
• There is NO RUSH to complete the hunt – you have all weekend (until Sunday, 3/4 at midnight MST)! So take your time, reading the unique posts along the way. Our hope is that you discover new authors/new books.
• Submit your entry for the grand prizes by collecting the CLUE on each author’s scavenger hunt post and submitting your answer in the Rafflecopter form at Stop #30. Many authors are offering additional prizes along the way!

I am delighted to be hosting the fabulous Mesu Andrews. She was exceptionally kind to me when we met last year at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference and I can’t wait for you to get to know her and her beautiful writing!

Here’s a brief summary of her latest release, Isaiah’s Daughter . . .

Ishma comes to the prophet Isaiah’s home as a five-year-old orphan, devastated after watching her family destroyed and living as a captive. With tenderness and care, her lively spirit is revived, and the prophet and his wife adopt Ishma, giving her a new name—Zibah, delight of the Lord. As the years pass, Zibah wins Prince Hezekiah’s favor, a boy determined to rebuild the kingdom his father has nearly destroyed. But loving this man awakens Zibah’s painful past and calls into question the very foundation of her father’s prophecies. Can she learn to rely on only Yahweh, who gives life, calms fear, and conquers nations?

Holy Pigeons!

by Mesu Andrews

I love watching a mama bird with babies in her nest. Birds, in general, are beautiful creatures—at a distance. Up close, they creep me out a little, but have you ever noticed the gorgeous, iridescent colors on a pigeon’s feathers? Did you know pigeons and doves are kissin’ cousins?

During the third painful re-write of Isaiah’s Daughter, my editor suggested I give Zibah, the heroine, a “hobby.” What in the world does a six-year-old servant do for fun in 600 B.C. Jerusalem?

I had just read Alice Hoffman’s, The Dovekeepers, and was fascinated by the myriad uses of doves in ancient Israel. What if my traumatized little heroine found peace and solace in the ancient practice of dove-keeping? What if she and her little birds calmed each other?

As the story evolved, many opportunities for spiritual applications arose. This was one of my favorites from the lips of Isaiah’s wife, Aya:

She looked at me with glistening eyes. “Do you know why Master Isaiah calls me a prophetess?” I shook my head but was eager to hear. “It’s not because I proclaimed Yahweh’s words to kings or predicted future events that came to pass. Isaiah calls me prophetess because I speak with Yahweh as a friend—and He answers.”

My mind began to spin with questions, but the most important came out first. “How do you hear Yahweh’s voice?”

“How do you call a palm dove to light on your arm?”

Obedient but confused, I answered her question. “I become peaceful and then sing the dove’s song.” How could my call to the dove answer my interest in how Mistress heard Yahweh?

Her eyes sparkled as she helped me work it out. “If I became peaceful and tried to make dove noises, would your dove light on my arm?”

“Perhaps not.” I thought more about what made my dove come to me. “It’s the trust and familiarity between me and my dove that creates the bond. Only after the second year would the dove light on a platform and take food from my hand. It was the third summer before it actually landed on my arm.”

Mistress nodded. “Talk with Yahweh, Ishma. A bond will form, and He’ll become familiar, Someone you can trust.”

I hope Zibah, Aya, and their little doves have encouraged you today!

Biblical fiction is Mesu Andrews’ favorite genre to read and to write.

Her deep understanding of and love for God’s Word brings the biblical world alive for her readers.

She and her husband, Roy, live in a log cabin snuggled into the beautiful Appalachian Mountains with their dog, Zeke.

HERE’S THE STOP #26 SKINNY:

You can order Mesu’s book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, CBD, Lifeway, or at your local bookstore!

Clue to Write Down: you

Link to Stop #27, the Next Stop on the Loop: Mesu Andrews’s own site!

But hang on y’all!

Before you head over to Mesu’s site, I’m giving away a prize pack that includes all 3 of my books (Beneath the Surface, Hidden Legacy, and Covert Justice), some Dive Team Investigations goodies and a Starbucks gift card! All you have to do is sign up for my newsletter or note that you already subscribe. You can grab extra entries if you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, or if you like my Facebook Author page or subscribe to my blog. (This giveaway is open to residents of the US only).

Click on the Rafflecopter form below to get started! All the links you need are in the contest entry form! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The post Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt Stop #26 appeared first on Lynn H. Blackburn.

I am thrilled to tell you that I will be one of 29 authors participating in the Spring Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt next weekend!

The event runs March 1-4 and it’s going to be amazing!

DETAILS:

• It begins and ends at Lisa T. Bergren’s website, March 1 at noon MST, and ends March 4 at midnight, MST. (Look for Stop #1 after noon MST on March 1).
• All you have to do is sit back, read, collect/write down the clues, enter for extra prizes along the way, and then enter for the big prizes at the end.
• It is open to international (outside the USA) readers.

CONTEST-WIDE PRIZES INCLUDE:

• Grand Prize: All 29 books plus $250 Amazon Gift Card
• 2nd Prize: All 29 books plus $75 Amazon Gift Card
• 3rd Prize: All 29 books plus $50 Amazon Gift Card
• 4th Prize: $50 Amazon Gift Card
• 5th Prize: $25 Amazon Gift Card
  If a winner outside of the USA is randomly chosen, then the gift card will be the equivalent value in funds in your country.

You don't want to miss the Spring Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt! March 1-4, 2018. 29 Authors offering over $1500 in books & prizes!
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I will be doing a giveaway here on my site in addition to the contest-wide prizes. People who sign up to receive my newsletter will be entered into a drawing for a copy of my new release, Beneath the Surface, as well as copies of my previous two books, Covert Justice and Hidden Legacy. I may even add some #DiveTeamInvestigations goodies to sweeten the deal.

I’d love for one of my readers to win the Grand Prize! 

Grace and peace,

The post Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt Coming Soon appeared first on Lynn H. Blackburn.