Cover Reveal: Katie Carroll's Pirate Island, Storytime Blog Hop April 26

Signs of Spring--Tulips

Hello and welcome to the J.Q. Rose blog!

I hope you enjoyed the spring holidays and your heart is filled with sunshine even if you are experiencing April showers.

Today I am excited to feature the cover reveal for my author friend Katie Carroll. Pirate Island will be an exciting adventure novel for midde grade readers, but I know Katie's writing. Grown-ups will get a kick out of it too! Looking forward to its release this fall. Now here's some information on Pirate Island!

PIRATE ISLAND

by Katie L. Carroll (katielcarroll.com)

Cover Illustration by Susan Tait Porcaro (susantaitporcaro.com)

Coming October 2017!

PIRATE ISLAND blurb:

A thrice cursed island, a legendary pirate treasure, and one not-so-brave boy. What could possibly go wrong?

For centuries, the whereabouts of Captain William Kidd’s lost pirate treasure has remained a mystery. When Billy’s best friend, Andy, proposes they look for it on nearby Pirate Island, Billy thinks it’s just another one of their crazy adventures. It’s usually Billy who ends up in trouble as a result, but he goes along for the ride…like always. The more he delves into the life and death of Kidd, the more he thinks the treasure is real and that it might be buried on the small island in Long Island Sound. Billy—nope, call him William—becomes obsessed with the captain of the same first name. He even believes he’s possessed by Kidd’s restless soul. Now he and the spirit of a long-dead pirate are leading the crazy adventure on Pirate Island. And what they find is far bigger than the treasure they imagined.

About the Author:

Katie L. Carroll always says she began writing at a very sad time her life after her sister Kylene unexpectedly passed away. The truth is Katie has been writing her whole life, and it was only after Kylene’s death that she realized she wanted to pursue writing for kids and teens as a career. Since then writing has taken her to many wonderful places, real and imagined. She has had many jobs in her lifetime, including newspaper deliverer, hardware store cashier, physical therapy assistant, and puzzle magazine editor. She works from her home in Connecticut that is filled with the love and laughter of her sons and husband.

In addition to PIRATE ISLAND, Katie is the author of the YA fantasy ELIXIR BOUND. Find Katie on her website, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

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Next week, Wednesday April 26, I'll be participating in the Storytime Blog Hop.

Logo Credit: Katharina Gerlach

Founded 2015 by students of “How To Think Sideways: Career Survival School for Writer’s,” 
writing course created by writer and teacher Holly Lisle.

So many creative, talented writers share short stories to make you  laugh, cry, angry, surprised and all the emotions a writer can wring out of you. I hope you'll join us!!

Happy Birthday, Signs of Spring, Vegetable Gardening, Growing Lettuce, Romance Readers Want to Know,

Hello and welcome to the J.Q. Rose blog.

About thirty plus years ago, I gave birth to a pink bundle of joy we named Lee Ann. She was such a smiley newborn, the nurses asked permission to use Lee Ann to demonstrate how to bathe a baby for the new mothers in the maternity ward. And yes, indeed she was the smiling star. To this day, she is a beautiful, smart young woman who smiles a lot.

Lee Ann and J.Q. at a make-up demo at Merle Norman Cosmetics.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEE ANN!

I hope you're finding signs of spring in your corner of the world. Mother Nature sometimes has a difficult time transitioning from harsh winter weather to gentle, warm temperatures in March. Usually it's a mixed bag of cold and warm that month. (Secretly I think she suffers from PMS during March.)

Have you seen spring creeping over your landscape?

We're preparing to head north which means Gardener Ted is getting seeds started for the Michigan garden. The seed flats are a sign of spring for me. Today he brought in some gorgeous lettuce from the Florida garden.

Sitting out on the picnic table in the backyard, are tiny seedlings he has planted for Up North.

Green pepper plants popping up. 
You can barely see some of them, no bigger than a pencil lead.

Teeny tiny lettuce seedlings in foreground. Begonias in background.

These lettuce plants are ready to be planted in our Florida garden, but depending on the weather and how soon we leave, we may not be able to harvest. But he just can't throw them away now, can he? No.

Lettuce ready to be transplanted.

No wonder gardeners are always optimistic when spring comes. They are a part of  the miracle hidden in seeds. From this tiny, seemingly lifeless form, a vegetable or a flower grows. Such mystery. The garden reminds me of the mystery of the Easter resurrection. 

You're a gardener whether you plant a plot of ground, a pot on your deck, or a small bowl filled with lettuce plants sitting by your back door. They're all good and offer the opportunity to play in the dirt. How about you? Do you grow plants, vegetable or flowering? What's your favorite vegetable to grow in the garden? 

If you're interested in starting a garden, Gardener Ted shares many helpful tips in the ebook, Quick Tips on Vegetable Gardening: Starting Your Garden. Click the cover below to download a sample and/or purchase a copy for yourself.

Romance Readers Want to Know
Every Thursday on the J.Q. Rose Blog

Come back on Thursday, March 10, when author Shirley Martin answers the questions her readers want to know.

Take some time today to look for spring!

Travelogue: Signs of Spring from South to North

Lilies blooming in our Florida yard mid-April 2015

Hello and welcome to the J.Q. Rose blog. Yes, we are back home in beautiful Michigan. The countryside is just waking up to spring. We arrived to sunny skies and warm temperatures (about 70 degrees F/21 C). Of course we won't mention the rain, cool temps, and  snowflurries forecast for mid-week. We are delighted with this rare treat.

The Snowbirds-Author J.Q. Rose and hubby, Gardener Ted

We had an uneventful 1300 mile trip from Florida to the North country. And that's the way we like it!

Our route home from Florida to Michigan
Find lots of maps at mapofusa.net

We left lush, green Florida landscapes and colorful flowers and the beaches teeming with sun-loving visitors. We knew we'd pass through spring in its various stages as we drove north. Take a peek at the signs of spring we spotted on our journey home. 

Please remember these photos were shot "on the way" north. Yes, through the windshield of our 70 mph speeding pick-up truck. You may have to squint to focus in on some of them!

We had to say good-bye to our Florida neighbors and their beautiful geraniums. 

Nickajack Lake picnic area near Jasper, Tennessee.
The park has a lovely campground.
Can you imagine how busy this place must be in the summer? 

I bet there are a LOT of fish in this lake.

On this trip we discovered the annual National Cornbread Festival 
which is held in South Pittsburgh, TN, just a few miles from Nickajack Lake.
The Lodge Cast Iron factory is located in this small town.
This company is world-renowned for their quality cast iron cookware.
Hey, if you have no plans this weekend, April 25-26,
you can attend the cornbread festival!! 

You can see we are in leafless country,
but with buds showing on the trees and green grass growing.

Yes, we endured traffic congestion in some of the cities we passed through.

And lots of construction!! The orange barrels kind of ruined the scenic areas!

Redbud trees, a sure sign of spring in Tennessee.

This flowering tree graced out motel room in Indiana.
Gorgeous yellow forsythia were also blooming.

The farmers are getting ready to plant, definite signs of spring in Indiana.

At last, we are near home. All the fruit orchards are nothing but branches and trunks.
No signs of life.

Notice the sparse green grass and no leaves on the trees. But spring will come.

The promise of spring is alive and well in our yard.
The hyacinths are growing and the tulips are budding.

Daffodils are a welcoming sight. They just make my heart happy with their bright yellow blossoms. Pure spring joy.
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So how far are you into spring? Flowers, leaves or no leaves, or are you in the part of the world just entering fall? What IS your favorite season of the year?

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