Lessons from the Open Road by K. Dawn Byrd

Bio:
K. Dawn Byrd is an author of inspirational romance, romantic suspense, and non-fiction. She is an avid blogger and gives away several books per week on her blog at www.kdawnbyrd.blogspot.com, most of which are signed by the authors. She's also the moderator of the popular facebook Christian Fiction Gathering group at http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=128209963444.

When not reading or writing, K. Dawn Byrd enjoys spending time with her husband of 16 years while walking their dogs beside a gorgeous lake near her home and plotting the next story waiting to be told.

Lessons from the Open Road

A couple of years ago, the idea of writing a devotional about the lessons I learned while riding a motorcycle came to me. I had no idea what I was getting into and how much writing devotionals would minister to me as an author. I jotted down notes for weeks, hoping to come up with enough lessons to take the reader through a month. Lessons from the Open Road ended with 33 lessons, each followed by Scripture and prayer.

Sometimes life is hard. Sometimes learning new things is hard. Just when I thought I'd mastered the parking lot where I was learning to ride my little Yamaha Virago starter bike, I pulled out, forgot to hit the brake, did an Evel Knievel, and jumped a short concrete wall, landing in some trees. My poor little bike limped home with a hole in the crankcase the size of a quarter. J-B Weld to the rescue!

I'm stubborn, too stubborn to quit. After I recovered from the sore neck that resulted from my stunt, I climbed back on the old iron horse. Eventually, I graduated from the parking lot and hit the streets. When I'd learned to ride well enough to satisfy hubby, he bought himself a new Harley and I inherited his anniversary edition Harley Davidson Sportster. And, when I graduated with my masters degree, you'd never guess what I wanted. Yep, a new bike. I became the proud owner of a Screamin Eagle V-Rod (picture attached.)

All good things must eventually come to an end. I enjoyed my days on the road, but found another passion. Writing. I work a full-time job and since there's only so much time in the day, I have to choose what's most important to me. The bike had to go. Occasionally, I miss it, but for the most part, I'd rather be writing. I'm hoping the devotions in Lessons from the Open Road will minister to your heart as much as writing them did to mine.

Lessons from the Open Road is currently available in ebook format and will be coming soon in print. I had planned to list it at no cost, but Amazon wouldn't allow me to do so. I've listed it at the lowest price Amazon allows, 99 cents, and all proceeds will be donated to my church's building fun for the new church that's currently under construction.

For more information about Lessons from the Open Road, you can check it out on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Lessons-Open-Road-ebook/dp/B007OYYG64/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1332895452&sr=8-1


Links:

Book giveaway blog: www.kdawnbyrd.blogspot.com

Young adult blog: www.zoe-mack.blogspot.com

Website: www.kdawnbyrd.com

I'm also on Twitter (kdawnbyrd) and facebook (K Dawn Byrd.) I am the moderator of the Christian Fiction Gathering facebook group (http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=128209963444) If you join this group, you'll get reminders about the weekly book giveaways.

K. Dawn Byrd's This Time for Keep's

India McGuire's peaceful life is shattered when on the night of her engagement to David Richards, she comes face to face with Chase Porter, a long lost love. India must come to terms with her overpowering feelings for Chase and choose between David, the neighbor who says he loves her, and Chase, the man who broke her heart.

Chase's plans of leaving quietly turn to disaster when he finds that it's impossible to disappear without seeing India one last time. Feelings begin to surface that he believed buried forever and he finds himself fighting to win her back even as David struggles to hold onto her.

India longs to follow her heart, but she's been hurt too deeply. Who will she choose? The neighbor who can provide stability or the man she vowed to love forever who may once again heed to the call of the open road?


EXCERPT:

An uncomfortable silence enshrouded the room like a damp cloak. At last, India broke the stillness. "When are you leaving town?"

"As soon as I wrap up things with Mom's attorney." Chase returned to the couch and turned to face her. "Look, I didn't mean to cause trouble. My plans were to put the house and land up for sale, settle the estate, and then sneak out of town."

"What stopped you?"

He dragged his fingers through his hair. "You. I had to see you one last time."

"Why?"

"I wanted to find out if I still loved you."

She wasn't ready to address his feelings. Part of India begged for the truth, but another other part was afraid that knowing would complicate her life in ways she was in no means equipped to handle. "Your feelings for me didn't stop you from joining the Army and leaving town twelve years ago. What's changed now?"

"I was a just a boy then. I'm not the same person."

India needed answers, and no matter how much it hurt, she'd get them. "Why'd you run away?"

"Joining the Army seemed as good as any way to see the world."

She stared him down, refusing to look away. "That's a lie and you know it."

"Okay. I couldn't stay here after what happened."

"It wasn't your fault. Jimmy was drunk. You didn't force him to drive."

Chase sighed. "I should have taken the keys."

"I'm telling you, it wasn't your fault."

"I didn't try to stop him."

"Even if you'd tried, he'd still have driven. You know how he was."

Chase gazed into the fire. "He was my best friend. I should have at least tried. I heard all the rumors. They blamed me. Some people even thought I gave him the moonshine. I guess I left because I just wanted to forget about everything."

"And everyone?"

His eye met hers with an intensity that left her breathless.

Chase untied the bandana around his neck and shoved it in his pocket. "I didn't say that."

"You could have taken me with you."

"And take you away from your grandparents to live on a military base? You'd have given up college, your horses, and your family. You'd have been miserable."

A glimmer of gold on his left hand caught her eye and stole her breath. "You're married?" Maybe if he had a wife, it would be easier to let him go, even if it did break her heart into a million tiny pieces all over again. Maybe David was right. Maybe Chase was trouble.


Links:

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kg6faoavpGI

Desert Breeze Publishing: http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-218/This-Time-For-Keeps/Detail.bok

Website: www.kdawnbyrd.com

Blog: www.kdawnbyrd.blogspot.com

Young adult blog: www.zoe-mack.blogspot.com

I'm also on Twitter (kdawnbyrd) and facebook (K Dawn Byrd.) I am the moderator of the Christian Fiction Gathering facebook group (http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=128209963444)

K. Dawn Byrd's New Release Mistaken Identity - Check it out!

Eden Morgan makes a list of six goals to accomplish in order to have the best summer ever. Getting a boyfriend, which is perhaps the most important goal, becomes complicated when she and her best friend, Lexi, fall for the same guy. Since Lexi is popular, gorgeous, and always gets her guy, Eden thinks she doesn't have a chance.

Channing Johnson is everything Eden's ever dreamed of and she can't believe he just moved in next door. When he starts showing interest in her, she's overjoyed...until she sees him out on a date with Lexi. He says Lexi talked him into it to repay her for tutoring him. Lexi says they're in love.

Eden doesn't know who to believe and is forced to choose between her best friend and the guy of her dreams. Nothing is as it seems and no matter who she chooses, someone will get hurt.


EXCERPT:

We played water volleyball until I was tired, and then we swam a while. I did some laps, glad that I'd lost at least some of the weight I'd put on during the winter. I was so lost in my thoughts that I hadn't realized I'd swam too close to Channing until I surfaced and found myself almost in his arms. He reached out to steady me, and I stepped forward, attempting to regain my balance.

A shiver tripped over my skin even though the night was warm. My eyes locked with his, and I found myself lost in the mossy depths. He hadn't released me, and his hands were warm on my arms.

We stood there, speechless, drinking in each other in with an odd kind of understanding, an odd feeling that all was well in the world and we were meant to be together. His touch and his gaze were so mesmerizing that I couldn't have looked away if my life depended on it.

"Channing, you ready to go?" called his mother from somewhere across the patio.

The spell was broken. I backed away, hoping our parents hadn't seen the magic that had passed between us. I wasn't sure what my parents would think about my dating a senior if Channing asked me out.

"Good night," I said, turning and diving under the water, my heart beating wildly as what passed between us seemed like a dream, a beautiful, surreal dream.

I surfaced on the other end and watched Channing retreat from the pool. He turned and waved and, just like that, the guy of my dreams, walked right out of my life.


ENDORSEMENTS: While Christian fiction is a popular genre, I think there is a bit of a hole in the Christian young adult genre, and Mistaken Identity does a great job of filling it. Not all teens want to be reading about the kind of romance you seen in books like Twilight, so this is a nice way of not only providing them with an appropriate type of romance, but really giving them something to read about the sounds a lot like the lives they live, and the struggles they face. Bravo for Mistaken Identity, and I hope we see more like this from Byrd. ---Tiffany Harkleroad

A book for parents and teenagers alike, this one deals with important issues as well as having an engaging storyline, loveable characters and enough nail biting moments to keep you rooted to the pages and wondering about the characters after the last page is turned. ---Clare Revell


LINKS:

You tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geWeGQ6Ueu4

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Mistaken-Identity-ebook/dp/B0056AT186/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1315948663&sr=8-1

My Publisher: http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-178/K-Dawn-Byrd-Mistaken/Detail.bok

My website: http://www.kdawnbyrd.com/

My blog: http://www.kdawnbyrd.blogspot.com/

Author Interview - K. Dawn Byrd

Joining us today is K. Dawn Byrd. Let’s begin with her bio -

K. Dawn Byrd is an author of inspirational romance. She holds a masters degree in professional counseling from Liberty University that she believes gives her better insight into the minds, feelings and emotions of individuals, which helps her to better understand her characters and develop them more fully. Queen of Hearts, a WWII romantic suspense will release April 1 and Killing Time, a contemporary romantic suspense will release August 1, both with Desert Breeze Publishing. When not reading or writing, K. Dawn Byrd enjoys spending time with her husband of 14 years, walking their dogs beside a gorgeous lake near her home, and plotting the next story waiting to be told.

[Anne] When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

[K. Dawn] I don't think I ever work up one day and said, "I want to be a writer." For me, it was more of a journaling experience. I thought that one day, I might want to write and I wrote down personal experiences that I might later use in writing. For example, I worked as a counselor in a regional jail for a while and jotted down some notes about those experiences such as the smell, sounds, sights, etc. Before I knew what had happened, I had fictional characters in my head wanting me to tell their story. Killing Time was born. It's actually the first book I wrote and will release from Desert Breeze Publishing in August.

[Anne] Tell us about your latest book.

[K. Dawn] Here's the blub from my publisher:

Daphne Dean is proud to be serving her country stateside during WWII as a reporter and an Office of Strategic Services operative. When the photograph she takes of the crowd at a murder scene places her on the mob's hit list, she's forced into hiding in a vacant mental asylum in the middle of nowhere with terrifying secrets of its own.

Daphne believed herself to still be in love with her ex-fiancée, Kenneth, until she spends several days locked away in the asylum with Vito, the mob boss' son. Can she put the terrifying events that occurred there behind her and allow herself to pursue a relationship with Vito? Or, will she return to Kenneth who has turned his back on his country by becoming a draft dodger and a black market racketeer? One thing's for sure, it won't matter if she can't escape the mental institution alive.

[Anne] What inspired you to write this story?

[K. Dawn] Queen of Hearts was my NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) project. I'd finished two romantic suspense books and wanted to try something a little different. I enjoyed writing a historical.

[Anne] How did you go about researching your book?

[K. Dawn] Actually, I've been a WWII buff for years and didn't have to do much research at all. Since the book was my NaNo project, I had only thirty days to write it. Because of this, I went into it with a pretty detailed plot and knew where I wanted to go with the project.

[Anne] Do you have anything new in the works?

[K. Dawn] I'm currently finishing up the edits for Killing Time, my August release from Desert Breeze Publishing and finishing up three non-fiction projects. Designing Destiny, Lessons from the Open Road, and Witty Quotes for Readers and Writers will be available soon on Amazon.

[Anne] What is your writing process like? Are you a plotter or a panster?

[K. Dawn] I'm a plotter, but my characters normally take on a life of their own and take me down roads I never planned to travel. That's okay though because in many cases, they improve the story.

[Anne] If you could be anyone of your characters, which one would you chose to be and why?

[K. Dawn] I would want to be Mindy McLaurin. She's the heroine in Killing Time and even though she's faced with insurmountable obstacles after being wrongly accused and incarcerated, her faith in the Lord remains strong.

[Anne] Say your publisher has offered to fly you anywhere in the world to do research on an upcoming book, where would you most likely want to go? (Okay so maybe this isn’t very likely to happen but since I’m asking the questions…)

[K. Dawn] Hawaii. My husband has always wanted to go there.

[Anne] You’ve just been informed that your latest release was a NY Times bestseller and Hollywood wants to turn it into a movie. What actors would you choose to play your main characters?

[K. Dawn] Daphne- Isla Fisher; Vito- Lucas Black; Kenneth-Chance Crawford

[Anne] What type of books do you like to read when you’re not writing?

[K. Dawn] Romantic suspense are my favorite.

[Anne] Name three things you can’t live without (excluding spouses and family because that’s a given).

[K. Dawn] My Blackberry (my husband says I'm married to it), my netbook, and the internet.

[Anne] What advice would you give to any aspiring writers out there?

[K. Dawn] Learn everything you can about the craft. I bought and studied dozens of books on writing before becoming published. It's hard out there. It seems like "everyone" is writing a book. I'm still studying and learning and hope I never stop.

[Anne] Where can we find you on the web?

[K. Dawn] If you Google my name, you'll come up with dozens of sites where I've blogged. My bog address is www.kdawnbyrd.blogspot.com. I give away several books per week there, most of them signed by the author.

[Anne] Where can we purchase your book(s)?

http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-70/Queen-of-Hearts/Detail.bok

http://www.amazon.com/Queen-of-Hearts-ebook/dp/B003EV5T3K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1270176182&sr=1-2