Special Guest - Debby Mayne

White Roses are pleased to have with us once again, author Debby Mayne with her book, Love Finds You in Treasure Island, Florida.

Author and speaker Debby Mayne grew up in a military family, which meant moving every one to three years throughout her childhood. Debby was born in Alaska and lived in Mississippi, Tennessee, Oregon, Florida, Hawaii, and Japan. Her comfort foods are as diverse as her interests. You might find her eating sushi while reading a cozy mystery novel or fried catfish while watching a Tampa Bay Buccaneers football game.

Her husband of almost 30 years has accepted the fact that outside of her faith and family, books are the most important thing in her life. She and Wally have two grown daughters, Lauren and Alison, a son-in-law, Jason, and a granddaughter named Emma.

Debby has published 11 books, more than 400 short stories and articles, and 5 novellas that have been printed in 6 anthologies. She has also worked as the managing editor of a national health magazine, product information writer for a TV retailer, and as a copy editor and proofreader for several book publishers. Debby currently enjoys writing Christian fiction, which allows her the freedom to tell stories without restraining her convictions.

She lives on Florida’s west coast with her husband and two cats. To learn more about Debby, visit her website at http://debbymayne.com.

Debby's 2009 releases: Peachtree Dreams - Barbour Publishing, April 2009

Love Finds You in Treasure Island, Florida - Summerside Press, June 2009

Christmas Homecoming - Barbour Publishing anthology with Paige Winship Dooly, Elizabeth Goddard, and Elizabeth Ludwig, September 2009

Noah's Ark - Heartsong Presents, October 2009

Be Still and Let Your Nail Polish Dry - Summerside Press, 2009

Love Finds You in Treasure Island, Florida - Amanda Burns owns a bicycle shop in Treasure Island, Florida, but she has very little time to enjoy the charming town or its beautiful beaches. When she's not caring for her emotionally demanding sister, she's busy waiting on customers. There's one customer she never minds seeing. Each year for his parents' anniversary, Jerry Simpson returns to the shop to rent a bicycle for two. Jerry's sense of responsibility to his parents has prevented him from even thinking about love. Will he and Amanda find the treasure they both deserve, even if neither of them is looking for it?

Working with Summerside Press: From the moment of my sale to Summerside Press, editor Rachel Meisel has been a joy to work with. Jason and Carlton have put together a great team of publishing professionals, and I'm excited to be included in the fabulous lineup.

Thank you Debby! Best of luck and God's blessings on your writing.

Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!"

Special Guest - Sandra D Bricker!

Please joine the White Rose Authors in welcoming author, Sandra D Bricker as our guest today.

“I'm going to be a writer when I grow up!"
Sandra D. Bricker declared these words to her father on a Sunday afternoon in Slidell, Louisiana. She was 5 years old, and was referring to being able to string her cursive letters together to write her full name for the first time, but the declaration proved somewhat prophetic. By the time she reached high school and her first article was published in The Cincinnati Enquirer, Sandie knew writing was what she wanted to do. For more than a decade, Sandie lived in Los Angeles and, while writing in every spare moment, she studied screenwriting and worked as a personal assistant and publicist to some of daytime television's hottest stars. When her mother became ill in Florida, she walked away from that segment of her life and moved cross-country to take on a new role: Caregiver.

"I guess most people would see my career as a publicist as a sort of dream job. But giving it up turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to me!” she declares. “Not only was I given the gift of getting to know my mother as an adult woman before she passed away, but I was also afforded the blessing of being able to re-focus on writing novels in an effort to pursue my dream of a writing career.”

That career weaves a web that draws in every age of reader. Sandie's interest in telling a story knows no boundaries. Three novels for middle readers carved out the beginning of the journey; then Avalon Books followed up with two hardbound romance novels in 2001: unWANTED: Husband (romantic comedy) and Change of Heart (romantic suspense). The response was tremendous, and Sandie was asked to pen a sequel to Change of Heart ... and so Sins of the Past was released in December 2003. Next up was another romantic comedy; Wish I Weren't Here was released in February 2005.

“I’m a Christian woman, first and foremost,” she says. “So my newest book is also a bit of a dream-come-true. Summerside Press has chosen me as one of two authors to launch their new Love Finds You line in October 2008. Love Finds You in Snowball, Arkansas is a romantic comedy for the inspirational market. So the best of all worlds, as far as I'm concerned!"

Future laughter is promised from this author. Her recent sales include Love Finds You in Big Sky, Montana and Love Finds You in Holiday, Florida for Summerside Press, and The Big Five-OH! for Abingdon Press (Spring 2010).After spending nearly 15 years dealing with her celebrity clients' fans, Sandie finds it amusing that she is suddenly the one getting fan mail!

"When people were actually buying my books at a recent signing, I found myself wanting to go around and invite them all to dinner or offer to bake them cookies. Hey! In fact ... maybe I'll do that very soon."

So what if she can't hook a fish? This city girl has a plan to snag something else ... and his name is Justin.Lucy Binoche is reasonably attractive, intelligent, she has French lineage and better-than-average hair. So why is she nearly 30 and still single? Justin Gerard is the rugged hottie new to her church's single group. When he signs up for a camping trip in the Ozarks, Lucy loses no time writing her name on the line beneath his. There's only one problem: Lucy's idea of "roughing it" is suffering through a long line at Starbucks. She assumes she can rely on the grace of God and the assistance of her friend to get her through. But at the campsite in Snowball, Arkansas, Lucy bungles everything she attempts as she tries to impress Justin. She can't fish, hike or ride a horse; caves make her hyperventillate and hot air balloons bring on nausea. Soon, events are snowballing out of control. Will Lucy pretend to be someone she's not to snag the guy? Or will she discover in time that there's someone else who loves her for just who she is?

Now a few words from Sandie.....I'd been published before Summerside, but never in the inspirational market. And that was the goal! When I heard about the new Love Finds You line Summerside Press was going to start, I was really excited. They turned down several of my proposals, and then one day my editor called to ask if I'd be interested in trying something specific. It seemed they wanted a laugh-out-loud romantic comedy for one of the two launch books, and they thought I'd be just the writer to give it to them.

I found this a little odd, since everything I'd submitted thus far had been rather serious in nature. But it turned out that the e-mails we'd been exchanging had them laughing at their laptops! So I dug in and put something together for Snowball. A week later, Summerside's Creative Director, Jason Rovenstine, told me I'd nailed it, and he invited me to be one of the launch authors for the line.

I was both excited and anxious. Launching a line can be exhilerating and wonderful, but it also means you're the first to dip your toe out there in the Great Unknown. My experience with Love Finds You in Snowball, Arkansas has resulted in a landslide of the greatest reviews I've ever received! A friend called me recently and asked, "Have you read the reviews on your book at Amazon?" I hadn't lately, so I stopped over to have a look. I was in tears by the second one. People had fallen in love with Lucy, and with her adventures in the quest for true love. But the greatest part was that, between the fits of laughter, so many of them seemed to be moved by her spiritual journey as well. As a writer who loves Jesus the way I do, there is no bigger rush than that!

There's lots going on in my life at the moment because of the success of Snowball, too. I've sold two more books to the Love Finds You line (Holiday, Florida will be released in November, and Carmel, California is slated for next year). In addition, I've sold a comedy to Abingdon Press for their new fiction line (The Big 5-OH!) which will be released in Spring 2010.

At the moment, I'm involved in some awesome promotion for a devotional that I co-authored with three other Summerside authors (Loree Lough, Debby Mayne and Andrea Boeshaar). It's called Be Still ... and Let Your Nail Polish Dry, and it's geared toward the busy woman on-the-go. We've already received amazing endorsements from Candace Cameron-Bure (remember D.J. Tanner on Full House?) and Robin Lee Hatcher. The authors have all decided to donate a portion of the proceeds to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (I'm a survivor). We have a blog devoted to the book over at http://bestilldevos.blogspot.com/ and I really do hope you'll all stop in there and say hello. We're so blessed (and humbled) by what the Lord is doing with that devotional.

So that's what's happening in my life these days. Thanks so much for having me here today!Blessings, Sandie Bricker

Thank you, Sandie for being with us today - please keep us posted on the Love Finds You line and the movies!

Well friends, hope you enjoyed this special guest. Join us on the 17th when Debby Mayne returns with her Love Finds You book!

Until later....Be Blessed!
Pamela S Thibodeaux
"Inspirational with an Edge!" (TM)

Special Guest - Kelly Marstad

Hello Friends,

Please join the White Rose Authors in welcoming special guest, Kelly Marstad as she talks about Guidelines. But first.....A little about Kelly.....

Kelly has been a writer for eight years. She is published both in eBook format and print through two separate publishing houses. She boasts six titles under another pen name in the mainstream market, all of which came out in 2008 and two which found their way to the top of the bestseller's list.

With the recent conviction that God did not intend her talents for the mainstream market, she has switched gears completely and is now pursuing the inspirational genre without regret. Kelly is the wife of a vicar, mother of two children, a life-long Christian, world traveler, student of human behavior and of the writing craft.

Kelly also does line and content editing for several publishing houses as well as individual authors. Find out more about Kelly at her website and blog or email her at: KellyMarstad@gmail.com

Now....Here's what Kelly has to say about Guidelines....Ah. Guidelines. We love them, don’t we. No, don’t argue. Let’s say it together, “I LOVE my guidelines.” Right, well, work on it for me, okay?

So here’s the thing. We write. We lurve writing. If we don’t write, our brains get so occupied with writerly thoughts that our real-to-life issues may suffer and clog like a big, hairy drain. We write because we have to, because it satisfies us, because it is the gift God has given us. And it is a gift which is why we sometimes get frustrated when guidelines stifle us. I think it’s safe to say that much.

A while back I did an article for the Seekers blog about my frustrations in transferring from the Mainstream market into the Inspirational market. It stemmed around the differences in ABA and CBA guidelines, and admittedly, I got a bit snarky (though, if you know me, you’d have laughed because I’m almost always snarky in a well-intentioned kind of way. Seriously. No, seriously. *sigh*). But I am here to eat my words—oh, for Pete’s sake, even I can’t say that with a straight face. How about, “I am here to modify my words”? Hmm. Yes, that sits better.

I had a tough lesson recently. It was about obedience. 1 Peter 2:13-17: “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men…live as servants of God.” I squinted when I read this. I figured if the words were blurry it didn’t apply so much. I might have convinced myself, if it had not been followed by Hebrews 13:1-5. “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established…Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted…”

Oh, bother. Even squinting couldn’t get me past that one.

My lesson was submitting to the senior pastor at our vicarage church (husband is a seminarian ie/pastor in training). Long story, but basically I could not do enough to please him, join enough, commit enough, to the point where I was asked to keep record of how often a day I pray and read my Bible. Now, I admit it did ease my mind to know the seminary agreed with me and wasn’t pleased with his ongoing requests for which he held my husband’s passing grade captive. But they asked me to submit.

The official line was, obey, apologize, commit, submit. Do not defend yourself or explain yourself for it would only anger the pastor. Submit because then you have done everything in your power to make the vicarage work. A tall order for me. I prayed. I ground my teeth. I prayed some more and then went to a meeting with him. And do you know? God came with me. I submitted. And in doing so, I learned just how much God’s people mean to me regardless of whether or not I agree with the institution placed before me.

What does this have to do with writing? “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority.” Even publishers. Even editors. Even *gasp* (dun-dun-dun-duuuhhhhhh) guidelines.
You are doing it for the Lord’s sake, not your own. You are doing it because He asked you to, not because the publisher wanted to be rigid (well, okay, maybe they do, but that’s beside the point). He gave you the gift and you serve Him.

Your obedience is all that is required here. Beyond whether we think topless-Joe is okay in a book and the publisher disagrees, beyond topless-Joe and svelte-Sally in an embrace, no matter how chaste, beyond topless-Joe having a beer with his non-alcoholic friends at a backyard barbeque, you must submit to the authorities over you. Not for your pride. For the good of your soul, mastered by your Heavenly Father.

“…he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted…” Are you rebelling? I was. Did. Still do, at times. I struggle to submit because I do have success in the mainstream market. I can make money writing with them. My editors and my publishers still want me back. And do you know, they will send me emails from time to time checking in with me, seeing if I meant what I said when I told them all good-bye and shut down my pen name.

My submission is to God, not my wallet. My submission to the Heavenly Father who gave me the ability to write in the first place and knowing that in my obedience to Him, He might use words from something I’ve written to touch even one of His blessed children. And because of that obedience, He will look at me with pleasure. Wow. Wow-wow-wow-wow-wow!

You know what’s even more freeing? I’m off the hook. I don’t have to like the guidelines, but I don’t angst over them either. Not anymore. I don’t have to wonder if my words carry purpose or carnality. Not anymore. I don’t have to wonder if I please God. Not anymore (sidebar: anyone else in here channeling Margie Lawson’s rhetorical writing?). Not when I do as He asks and submit my will to His. I’ll let Him worry about the details of whether or not I make it in this market. He’s a much better planner and publicist than I could ever be.

Interesting story and great advice, Kelly!

Watch for more special guests coming soon.

Until later....take care, Be BLESSED! and remember, White Rose Publishing is GIVING AWAY a Sony Ereader and it's NOT too late to enter the contest!

Pamela S Thibodeaux

"Inspirational with an Edge!" (TM)

Special Guest - Anita Higman

Today's special guest is Anita Higman and her book, Love Finds You in Humble, TX.

Award-winning author, Anita Higman, has twenty-four books published (several coauthored) for adults and children, and she has been honored as a Barnes & Noble “Author of the Month” for Houston. Anita has a B.A. degree, combining speech communication, psychology, and art. Some of her favorite things are exotic teas, going to the movies, and all things Jane Austen. She’d love for you to visit her website at www.anitahigman.com.

Here's an interview with Anita about her most recent novel, Love Finds You in Humble, TX.

Tell us about your most recent novel. I hired the amazing Circle of Seven Productions to do a book trailer for me, so I’ll let the narrator tell you a bit about the book. Click here: http://video.yahoo.com/watch/4269149/11475177

Do you have a favorite character in Love Finds You in Humble Texas? Actually, I was very interested in one of the smaller characters. I love Wiley Flat. He was such a surprise the way he showed up and revealed himself to me. Almost as if he really did exist. There are so many times I’ve thought it would be fun to attend a party and have all my characters show up. I could watch them interact with each other, and see what happens. Reminds me of the movie Stranger Than Fiction.


How did you come up with the idea for this novel? I started with a simple concept—two sisters who were very different. One would be an image coach and the other would be in desperate need of an image coach. Then I thought, “What if both sisters fall in love with the same man?” Now that seemed like an interesting concept since it would have a lot of natural built-in conflict, especially if the sisters were close. I wrote an opening scene, and then my fingers began to fly. Even though I generally know where the novel is going, many times the story reveals itself as I go along.

Are you anything like the heroine of your novel? I’m like Trudie Abernathy in certain ways. She has the heart of an artist, and she is introspective and has a passion for life. I am those things too. But Trudie is a compilation of many personality traits beyond me. Some pieces are from acquaintances, friends, family members, and from just watching people and taking mental notes. Then in the process of writing, the imagination takes over to add its own magic to the mix.

What do you hope readers will feel when they finish your book? Here is a tiny excerpt. “Life can be a collage of pretty pictures as well as a thousand shattered moments, but God can bring marvel to it all as He takes those broken pieces and, with the light of His grace shining through them, makes something beautiful, something treasured.” I hope readers feel that kind of encouragement when they close the book.

When did you realize that you were going to be a writer? At a young age I tried writing a novel. It was truly terrible, but I know those were the first little signs of what I would someday be. I should have taken the signs more seriously. But I didn’t. I walked away from my desires and dreams for a very long time. I had an appalling lack of confidence. And so when I was about thirty, I was reading a novel, and I thought, “Okay, I can do this.” I think it was God gently nudging me again. This time I listened. And I kept going, and have been writing ever since. I wish I could tell you the name of the novel I was reading when I had that epiphany, but the name of the book is lost from my memory. But I will never forget the way I felt when I made that decision to write—to finally allow myself to follow my dream.

What does an average workday look like for you? I get up around 5:30, eat oatmeal and grapefruit, and then take a mug of coffee upstairs to my office. I catch up on my email, and then I start writing. I break for an early lunch, and then I either run a few errands, or I go back to my writing. After dinner, I’m usually back in my office working again or I’ll spend the evening reading a good book. I don’t watch TV, but on the weekends I do love to rent new movies. Watching someone else’s story unfold is my treat after working hard all week, trying to tell my own story.

Where do you get the ideas for your novels? Everywhere I go, ideas come to me—whether it’s a book concept or a new character or a twist in the plot or a unique phrase. Sometimes I’ll be grocery shopping or picking up the dry-cleaning, and I’ll think of something to add to my work. That happens so often that I’ve come to accept errands as a blessing in disguise.
What are some of your favorite books? I enjoy reading the classics. I loved Oliver Twist, To Kill a Mockingbird, Romance of the Forest, Pride and Prejudice, and The Woman in White.

Do you have any tips for writers?
1. Read. I have discovered that the more I read the better I write.
2. Follow all leads from networking opportunities, writer's conferences, and tips from writer friends.
3. Look for "holes" in the marketplace. One way of finding holes is to talk to booksellers and librarians. You might discover that there is a real need for a certain kind of book. Perhaps a number of patrons have asked repeatedly for a particular subject and there are few or no books written on it.
4. Try brainstorming when you are out of ideas. Then when the ideas do flow, start a file for later use. For example, you could have a file with character profiles, bits of dialogue, fresh book titles, or other elements that you could eventually use in a new piece of writing.
5. Read all your work out loud. It sounds a bit simplistic, but it’s a valuable tool.
6. Titles are important. Make sure that your title is the very best it can be for your work. If you don't like it, brainstorm until you find a new one, or use a dazzling phrase from your manuscript.
7. If you feel a burnout approaching, and you're actually thinking about throwing in the towel, put your work aside, read a book for fun, start a journal, go on a writer's retreat, or take a break by writing something outside your genre.
8. Try making a habit of writing, even when you don't think you're in an inspired mood.
9. Pray that God will guide you and help you be the best writer you can be.
10 Many popular authors have known rejection, so you’re not alone if you have a drawer full of rejection slips. (Years ago I collected enough to paper a small room!) The bottom line is—if you feel called to write, don't give up.)

Great advice! Where can readers find you online? I’d love for you to drop by my web site. I’m at www.anitahigman.com.

Thanks for inviting me to your blog!

Thank You, Anita for blogging with us today!

PamT

Special Guest - Julie Lessman!

The White Roses are proud to have as our guest today, Julie Lessman!

Julie Lessman is an author who has garnered much writing acclaim, including ten Romance Writers of America awards. She resides in Missouri with her husband and their golden retriever, and has two grown children and a daughter-in-law. She is the author of The Daughters of Boston series, which includes A Passion Most Pure, A Passion Redeemed, and A Passion Denied. You can visit Julie at her Web site at http://www.julielessman.com/.

A PASSION MOST PURE:

She’s found the love of her life.
Unfortunately, he loves her sister.

As World War I rages across the Atlantic in 1916, a smaller war is brewing in Boston. Faith O’Connor finds herself drawn to an Irish rogue who is anything but right for her. Collin McGuire is brash, cocky, and from the wrong side of the tracks, not to mention forbidden by her father. And then there’s the small matter that he is secretly courting her younger sister. But when Collin’s affections suddenly shift her way, it threatens to tear Faith’s proper Boston family apart.
Book 1 of the Daughters of Boston series, A Passion Most Pure will carry your heart from the sophisticated streets of Boston to the green hills of Ireland as men go off to war and women long for their return. Full of passion, romance, rivalry, and betrayal, it will captivate you from the first page.

A PASSION REDEEMED:
Depth of beauty … shallow of heart, Charity O’Connor is a woman who gets what she wants. She sets her sights on a man who wants nothing to do with her, and although the sparks are there, he refuses to fan the coals of a potential relationship with a woman who ruined his life. Charity burned him once, destroying his engagement to the only woman he ever truly loved. He won’t play with matches again. But Charity has a plan to turn up the heat, hoping to ignite the heart of the man she loves. And she always gets what she wants—one way or another.

And Coming May 2009!

Book 3, A Passion Denied, is the story of Faith and Charity’s little sister, Lizzie, a shy bookworm who dreams of a fairy-tale romance. It unfolds a man’s dark past and a young girl’s shattered dreams … and the God who redeems it all.

Elizabeth O’Connor is the little sister John always longed for. With a fire for God in his belly, he has been her spiritual mentor since she was thirteen, sharing her love of literature and her thirst for God. But when his gangly protégé blossoms into a beautiful young woman bent on loving him, he refuses to act on the attraction he feels. His past won’t let him go there. Unfortunately, “Lizzie” won’t let him go anywhere else … until his dark and shocking secrets push her away.

Check out Julie's Daughter's of Boston Series today ~ and watch for 3 more in the series!

Until later....take care and Be Blessed.

PamT

Guest Hana Haatainen Caye

The White Roses would like to introduce to our readers the talented Pittsburgh writer and voice over artist Hana Haatainen Caye. Hana’s copywriting and voice over agency SPEECHLESS serves the needs of individuals world-wide.

We are happy to have Hana join us today. Please leave her comments and questions.
speechless@comcast.net

BIO: HANA HAATAINEN CAYE
Hana is a talented and versatile writer and voice over artist with over thirty years’ experience.

Voice over services:
A trained actress and public speaker
Corporate narrations
Audio books
Dramatic readings
Web voice-overs
eLearning modules
Podcasts
Character voices
IVR systems and messages on hold
Commercials
Interviews

Writing services:
SEO copywriting
Press releases
Advertising
Radio and television commercials
Professional bios
On hold messages
Personal or business letters
Eulogies
Children’s books
Poetry
Short stories
Magazine articles
E-books

Editing and proofreading:
Many websites and publications, including
the best-selling Chicken Soup for the Soul series

The Clear Choice
Welcome, Hana. Could you tell us when you first started writing?

I’ve been writing since elementary school. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t writing. I started out with simple poems, like:

Who has Lou’s
Other shoe?
She needs two.

I’ve since developed that short poem into a picture book.

I double-majored in Creative Writing and Theatre Arts in college, after being honored with my high school’s Creative Writing Award and Best Actress Award my senior year, so the writing just continues to evolve.

I would like to talk about one of your earlier writings, The Nickel Story, published in Chicken Soup for Grieving Soul in 2003. What was that story about?

It was a wonderful story about an elderly couple that attended my church. When Frank met Susan, she was a young widowed mother and he vowed to win her heart. She walked past him while he was playing pinball and caused the machine to tilt so he told her she owed him a nickel. Shortly before he died, after celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, Frank gave that very same nickel to our minister and instructed him to give it to Susan at the funeral. “Tell her I’ll be waiting by the pinball machine,” was his message to his bride. It’s a moving story and I was honored to have it published in the Chicken Soup series.

Hana, you’ve had your share of heartache in your life, including the loss of your first husband in an explosion. Isn’t it true many people thought The Nickel Story was written about your life?

Well, not actually. Of course, when they heard I was being published in the Grieving Soul anthology, they jumped to that conclusion. However, the story doesn’t reflect my loss in any way.

My husband was killed in an industrial fire, surviving only 23 hours with third-degree burns on 98% of his body. He was 34 at the time and we had two young daughters.

How do you heal from such a horrendous loss?

There’s a simple one-word answer to that: Grace. God’s amazing, all-encompassing Grace. It was a long road, but I never walked it alone.

And you eventually met and married a wonderful man, and together, you have five adult daughters. But something from your past haunted you, something you prayed for and hoped for with all your heart. Could you share with us what that was, Hana?

Before I started dating my first husband, Jim, I got pregnant to another man. I was 22 and living alone in Pittsburgh. Without family here for support, I decided to surrender my child for adoption. During my pregnancy, however, I started dating Jim. Even though we planned to be married the following year, I still decided it was best for everyone involved that I go through with the adoption.

I chose a family from profiles I was given, knowing only a few details about them, and not knowing their name.

I gave birth to a beautiful, perfect 7 lb. 12 oz. baby girl, lovingly cared for her in the hospital, prayed over her, sang her lullabies, and then handed her to a nurse three days later. That was the most difficult thing I’ve ever done in my life. I was so in love with her. I’d journaled to her throughout my pregnancy and beyond; journal entries expressing such love and deep loss.

Jim and I married less than one year later. Three days after our first anniversary, I gave birth to another baby girl, followed by a third one two years later. But my heart still ached for the one I gave away. My precious Meagan Rae.

Through the years, my other daughters were raised knowing about their older sister. They were with me each year as I grieved the loss of her on her birthday. I would by a card, write a note to her, seal it, and stash it away, in hopes of being able to share it with her someday. I would also buy a birthday cake, light candles and we’d sing Happy Birthday to the empty chair. Her birthday’s were heart-breaking days for me. How I longed to hold her one more time.

When I signed over the rights to my daughter, I also signed a form stating that if, when she was 18, she wished to find me, they could release my information. As her 18th birthday approached, I became consumed with hope of a reunion. I prayed fervently and waited by the phone. But her 18th birthday came and went. As did her 19th, 20th, 21st, and so on. Part of me would fall into deep depressions as I wondered why she hadn’t bothered to find me. I signed up on all the Internet sites for reunions, posting all the information she needed in case she was searching and didn’t know to go back to the agency. At times, I was almost desperate in my longing.

And God eventually answered your prayers, interceding through The Nickel Story. Readers would love to be inspired by your touching story. How did God reunite you and your daughter through your writing?

One Sunday, a couple of weeks past her 23rd birthday, I submitted an anonymous prayer request during our church service. It simply read Pray for Meagan to find her birthmother. The following Friday night, I spent a few hours scouring the Internet in hopes she’d registered somewhere looking for her birthmother. Discouraged, I turned off my computer and went into the bathroom to get ready for bed. It was one a.m. I looked in the mirror, with tears running down my face, and said, “Meagan, where are you? Why can’t you find me?”

At the same time, 10 miles away, my daughter’s adoptive mother was working on her computer. Suddenly, my name flashed through her mind, so she typed it into a search engine. Twenty-three years before this particular night, she read my name upside-down on the adoption papers. Being that my name has a unique spelling, she never was able to remember exactly how it was spelled. But as she entered it into her computer, an article appeared and she knew she had found me. She immediately phoned her daughter, who was out for the evening, and told her to come home. “I found her,” she explained. “I found your birthmom!”

The two of them stayed up all night, waiting for the right time to call me. At 8:15 a.m. my phone rang and I heard an unfamiliar voice start talking about a story I’d written for Chicken Soup for the Soul and an article the Post Gazette ran about me. I was annoyed at the early hour of the call on a Saturday morning and was ready to hang up on her when I heard her say, “I think I’m your daughter.”

I can’t even imagine the whirlwind of emotions storming through your head when you heard your daughter’s voice for the first time after so many years. Can you put those feelings into words?

When I realized what was happening, all I could say was, “Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God.” I don’t take that phrase lightly and rarely say it. My youngest daughter came running downstairs to find out what was wrong. Through my tears I told her, “It’s Meagan. It’s Meagan.” She immediately burst into tears herself and ran upstairs to get her cell phone to call her sister, who was at work. My husband, Bill, asked what was going on and came running downstairs to see for himself. After 45 minutes of everyone getting on the phone and talking to her and to her mom, we agreed to meet at 1:00 that afternoon.

It was a magical meeting. Both families coming together to celebrate a life given and a life cared for. I cannot adequately describe my feelings, but I can say that October 11, 2003 was the best day of my life. The joy was beyond belief. Holding her again (although she’s a good two inches taller than me!), seeing the joy on my children’s faces as they embraced their sister for the first time, and finally experiencing an answered prayer that was as much as part of me as every breath I take. Indescribable.

One final question. Do you have any inspiring words or a quote to leave us with before you leave?

Wow. Everything that comes to mind seems so cliché. I guess the bottom line is to never give up on your dreams. Whether it’s to finally see your name in print or to find what you’ve been looking for nearly all of your life, dreams do come true. Prayers are answered. Joy can be complete. Sometimes it just takes a little longer than we hoped it would.

Thank you for joining us, Hana. As many times as I’ve heard this story, it never fails to send chills racing down my spine. Hana placed her burden in God’s hands and never stopped believing. Just like the white roses blooming in our garden, FAITH is the cornerstone of love.

Read The Nickel Story and more on Hana’s website: http://www.speechless.sitesvp.com/.

Hana Haatainen Caye
Writer bringing out the best in words!
Voice Talent adding LIFE to all your audio projects!