Benjy and the County Fair II

I am so happy and proud to announce that I have been offered a contract for my second Benjy book, Benjy and the County Fair. While it is a sequel to the first book with the same loveable characters, the story has a completely different plot line. I hope everyone will enjoy my second book as much as the first book, Benjy and the Belsnickel. There is no release date as of yet but I will definitely keep my readers informed.
In addition, the study guide that will accompany the first Benjy book will be available soon. This is an excellent teaching tool for homeschoolers or for anyone who would like to use the book as a teaching tool.

BENJY AND THE COUNTY FAIR

Hi Everyone. I just wanted to share with my friends and family that I have finished the first draft of my second Benjy book, “Benjy and the County Fair.” Like my first book, it is a fun book that shares more adventures of Benjy and Sarah. The book will now go through the editing process. It will then be sent to my editor for review. I am nervous about going through the waiting process to see if it will be accepted by Whitespark for publication. Your prayers during this process would be greatly appreciated.

EMAIL FROM A FAN - THANK YOU, SHAY

Hi Bonnie!
I gave your book to my oldest, my son Shay (almost 13, 6th grade), in his Easter basket. He is on page 93 and he loves it. He never heard of the Belsnickel until now and he loves how Benjy pulls pranks.
And, Shay noticed on his own that you signed the book and he really enjoys that. He wondered if there are other Benjy books and I told him you are working on the next one! I couldn't wait to pass on his remarks to you because Shay is a hard one to sell on any particular book. He will listen to anything you read aloud to him, but he is always skeptical of any novel type book he starts on his own.
So Benjy is a big win at our house. I can't wait to read the whole thing once Shay finishes reading it. Congratulations! Seems like you know how to write a book that appeals to your target audience. (My boy is sitting at the kitchen table right now, after just getting off the bus, with his nose still buried in your book.)
Everyone is also a little enthralled that I know you and we're in the same critique group! So much fun to share in the product of your good, hard work. You've got a little fan club here.
Shay said that whoever/whatever the Belsnickel turned out to be was "smart" "really smart!" "oh my." he said (he was laughing when he said that). And that's all we talked about the Belsnickel because I asked him not to spoil it because I want to read it too, lol.:))
Sincerely, Laurie

ONE-ROOM SCHOOLHOUSES TODAY

One-room schoolhouses depict a way of life our children experienced many years ago. The schoolhouses weren’t fancy. They were built for the purpose of educating our children. My parents both attended one-room schoolhouses growing up in the 1930s. Some of their experiences made into my book, Benjy and the Belsnickel. Much of the book takes place in Benjy’s one-room schoolhouse. I love that I live across the road from a one-room schoolhouse that serves the Mennonite children in my community. There is no bus transportation. The kids either walk to school or ride their bicycles. The students wear fluorescent vests to help protect them from the traffic on today’s roadways. But many of the one-room school houses of an earlier time in history no longer serve as schools but often are now historic museums, private homes, bed and breakfast sites, and even restaurants and shops.

MEADOW SONG

Meadow Song
Interview by Bonnie Swinehart, February 25, 2019

I invited fellow-author Beth E. Westcott to be a guest on my blog.  I met Beth at a writers conference and learned about her book Meadow Song.

Here’s what Beth had to say.

                              
1. When did you discover you wanted to be a writer?

    I’ve loved writing since elementary school, but I didn’t consider becoming a writer until adulthood. When my older daughter became a high school senior, I decided I had to prepare for the “empty nest,” so I took a correspondence writing course.


2. Has the road to publication been different than you expected? How?

   The road to publication has changed a lot since I began. The Christian market is more competitive now, and the Christian fiction market demands a higher quality of writing. I didn’t think much about promotion and marketing.  I just wanted to write and write well. Now I am responsible to promote and market my book.


3. How did you come up with the idea for your book?
     
   Meadow Song began as a short story for a writing contest. The first two characters were the artist Kate and the little girl Blythe. The story didn’t feel complete, and it became a romance novel.   
        
        
4. Tell us about your book.

   Artist Kate Greenway leaves Mountain View after the death of her fiancé, hoping to escape the memories and the pain of her loss. A year after she moves to Millvale she meets Blythe, a little girl who is interested in Kate’s art, and Blythe’s uncle Jack. Kate falls in love with Jack, but he has put up a barrier to more than friendship with her because of his own losses. Kate returns to Mountain View to help care for her ill mother. Will Jack learn that God, the Master Potter, can take the broken pieces of their lives and make them into something new and beautiful?


5. How can readers purchase your book?

           Meadow Song is available on Amazon. I will be having a book signing at the Arrowhead Christian Store in Johnson City, NY sometime in March or April, 2019.

  
6.  Are you going to write more books? Are you working on another now?

          I am still writing, and I hope to have more books  published, including  a  sequel  to  Meadow Song.

7.  What would you like readers to know about you?

          My short story, “Sadie and the Princess” was published in Heartwarming Horse Stories on Amazon and is still available. I live in upstate New York with my husband. We were in vocational ministry for over thirty years. We have three adult children and five granddaughters.

Thank you, Beth

2019 GOALS

I have been mulling over the idea of New Year’s resolution and decided my resolution falls under the same line as my goals. So, for the New Year I hope to continue to market my book, Benjy and the Belsnickel and finish writing the second book on Benjy. The past year has been a great one. I got to experience the whole process of publishing a book from the very first email I received in which I was offered a contract to the day I actually signed it and made it a reality. I have a wonderful editor who allowed me to have input on everything along the way, most especially the cover and drawings. I seen my dream turn into a wonderful reality when the first shipment of books arrived on my doorstep. Can 2019 be any better than that. I don’t know but I sure am looking forward to seeing what the year has in store for me.

BOOK LAUNCH BLAST

Sunday , December 9, at 2 p.m. at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Liverpool is blast off day for my celebration Book Launch Party. It will be great fun with door prizes, a kid’s craft table, food, a dedication of the book, and a short introduction of the book which will be available to be signed and purchased that day. I am looking forward to seeing family and friends coming to share this special day with me. It’s not every day a dream comes true, but Benjy and the Belsnickel is a dream come true for me. I am filled with joy at the thought of sharing this time with each of you.

"Here are some lovely reviews of Benjy and the Belsnickel so far!"

n    Benjy and the Belsnickel by Bonnie Swinehart is a cute middle grade book about a boy who loves to get into mischief.
Benjy is an eleven year old boy who goes to school in a one-room schoolhouse in the 1930’s. He can’t seem to help himself from playing pranks, especially on the teacher, Miss Nettie. That gets him into loads of trouble until he hears about the Pennsylvania Dutch legend of the Belsnickel. He is afraid the Belsnickel will get him if he doesn’t change his ways. Is this creature dressed in black, with a buggy whip and bells on his hat filled with porcupine quills real or it something made up to scare him into good behavior? He knows right from wrong and prays for help to do the right thing.

This is a great chapter book for grade schoolers. Written in an easy manner, it is interesting and had me reminiscing about my childhood. I could almost feel the chill of winter and smell the wet wool hats and mittens. It took me back to sledding downhill, ice skating and taffy pulls of my younger days. The school reminded me of my three room schoolhouse when I was nine. I especially liked the way they started the school day with the Pledge of Allegiance and prayers. It seemed the whole community focused on the Church and each other.

--

n   Didn't someone once say that, "your sins will find you out"?

Well, that's exactly what Benjy Clemmons is afraid of, he just can't help himself as he pulls trick after trick and prank after prank among his unsuspecting classmates and always suspecting teacher. Until . . . everyone from his old fishing partner to his father begins to warn him about the Belsnickel; a menacing little creature with a soot covered face, wearing a hat covered with bells and quills, who visits naughty children during the month of December. (carrying an old horse whip, ouch!)

Enjoy this delightful tale of boy vs. naughty behavior and what it might take for Benjy to change his ways.

n  What a great middle school read, one that will bring the reader back to a simpler time, and a look at a sweet Christmas time.
Back to the one room school house, all six grades together, an unknown concept to today’s students.

      My 11-year-old is now looking forward to reading this as I have been sharing what is going on with him. He was surprised at the antics of Benjy, and I could sense the wheels turning as I told him what this boy was doing and the ramifications.

      Great ending to this story, and good lessons learned here!