Guest Post (and a Giveaway!): Jody Hedlund & Never Leave Me

Please join me in welcoming the incomparable Jody Hedlund to the blog to talk about her favorite writing spot and her new time travel romance, Never Leave Me!

NEVER LEAVE ME by Jody Hedlund
SERIES: The Waters of Time #2
GENRE: Inspirational Time Travel Romance
PUBLISHER: Revell
RELEASE DATE: January 4, 2022
PAGES: 351

In the last stages of a genetic disease, Ellen Creighton has decided to live out her remaining days at the estate of her longtime friend Harrison Burlington. Harrison cares deeply for Ellen, but as a wheelchair-bound paraplegic, he’s never allowed himself to get serious in a relationship. However, he’s desperately trying to save her by finding the holy water that is believed to heal any disease.

When he locates two flasks, Ellen refuses to drink one of them because she believes the holy water killed her sister and father. In an effort to convince her to take it, Harrison ingests the contents first, and when Ellen witnesses the effects, she can no longer deny the power of the substance in the bottles. Dangerous criminals are also seeking the holy water, and Ellen soon learns they will go to any lengths to get the powerful drug–including sending her back into the past to find it for them.

Bestselling and award-winning author Jody Hedlund plunges you into the swiftly flowing river of history in a race against the clock in this breathtaking, emotional second Waters of Time story.

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my favorite writing spot

by Jody Hedlund, author of Never Leave Me

As a mom who has homeschooled five children, one question I’m frequently asked is: “In such a busy household, where do you write most productively?”

For almost the entirety of my writing career, I’ve worked in a really glamorous spot: in my dining room at the table. 🙂 As the hub of my home, it allowed me to write and still keep tabs on my family. While I was able to make sure the dog wasn’t jumping on the counter and the kids weren’t murdering each other, I was rarely ever able to write without interruptions or distractions. But it did the job, and I completed many-a novel there.

As my kids have grown up and started to leave the nest, I finally gained an office. I now have a desk overlooking our beautiful backyard. I can display all the books I’ve written. I can leave piles of research books, plot notebooks, and to-do lists without worry of anyone disturbing them. Words cannot adequately express how much I ADORE my new office!

However, my new office has a futon which seems to invite everyone to come sit and talk to me. J I love that my family enjoys talking to me, but it also means my office isn’t all that private or distraction-free.  My office also serves as our guest room. So whenever someone comes to visit (which happens quite often with my grown children), I head to the dining room table and work there again.

What I’ve learned over the years is that I can’t rely upon separate, quiet space for my writing time. I’ve always been surrounded by my family coming and going and making lots of noise. None of my workspaces have ever been truly private, where I can sit uninterrupted for hours on end.

Yet, in spite of the chaos, I’m able to write multiple books a year. How is that possible? How can any author write productively and prolifically anywhere?

The KEY is self-discipline.

No matter where I write, no matter the circumstances around me, no matter the number of interruptions, and no matter the chaos, I park my butt in the chair and I don’t allow myself to quit my workday until I reach my self-imposed daily goal.

For those writers who think they have to wait until the house is quiet and empty before they can work, I’m living proof that no writer has to have perfect conditions to write. If I’d waited until I had no distractions or interruptions, I never would have started and certainly never would have sustained a writing career.

I’ve learned that life is messy (both physically and mentally), but it’s often in those messy places that some of the best stories are born.

Jody Hedlund (www.jodyhedlund.com) is the bestselling author of more than thirty historical novels for both adults and teens, including Come Back to Me, and is the winner of numerous awards, including the Christy, Carol, and Christian Book Awards. Jody lives in Michigan with her husband, busy family, and five spoiled cats. She loves to imagine that she really can visit the past, although she’s yet to accomplish the feat, except via the many books she reads.

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Revell is offering a print copy of Never Leave Me by Jody Hedlund to TWO of my readers! (US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.) This giveaway is subject to Reading Is My SuperPower’s giveaway policies which can be found here. Enter via the Rafflecopter form below.

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What about you? What makes you want to read Never Leave Me by Jody Hedlund?