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| Gail Pallotta |
My eyes bugged out when I saw the subject for this blog. Tell how I balance life?
Not so easily came to mind.
I seem to constantly change plans. There are courses offered on time management. I’ve never attended one or read a book about the subject, but I’ve listened to lots of speakers address it. There are plenty of day planners, month by month calendars and notepads available. I actually keep two calendars, one for our personal lives and one for writing and blog deadlines. Yet, I have difficulty keeping up with all I need to do. Life’s distractions are constantly jumping into the middle of my schedule.
When that happens I try to let God lead me. I purposely use the word try, because it’s an attempt not a sure thing by any means. Say, I’m working on a deadline for a book or blog. I’m already behind, but my daughter calls and needs something. Or, a friend calls. She’s lonely and wants to go to lunch and talk. What if my husband needs my help with something he’s doing? And then there are those nasty germs that invade my immune system from time to time. Where are my priorities? Unless it’s a situation in which I have no choice, such as an illness that puts me to bed, I have to decide what’s more important. Sometimes it’s difficult, and I have to put lots of thought and prayer into it. Sometimes it’s instantaneous, almost subconscious.
As for writing, a recent project comes to mind. When one of my critique
partners suggested each of Mountain of Love and
Danger, a retelling of Jack and the
Beanstalk.
In the book Jack Greenthumb finds romance in Fairwilde Kingdom—a
different day—a different girl. Then a cruel mystery begins. Dad’s beaten, the
family farm destroyed and Jack’s true love, Gwendolyn Bante, kidnapped. Jack’s
undercover operation reveals Gwenie’s a captive atop a mountain accessible only
by helicopter. Reaching her is a dangerous expedition even for a champion rock
climber like Jack. However, a Greenthumb Acres employee plants a miraculous
seed from Heaven for the rescue. Suspense mounts as Jack scales the perilous
cliff to face a brute and a treacherous descent.
Fifth in the series, it’s been described as romantic with danger,
suspense and outlandish characters. The other books are At the Edge of a Dark Forest, a retelling of Beauty and the Beast by Connie Almony; Red and the Wolf, from Little
Red Riding Hood by June Foster; Mirror
on the Fall, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Mildred and Jonathan Colvin; and
Swept Away, Cinderella by Vanessa Riley.
We had so much fun writing these, I’d make the choice to do it again in
a nano-minute. Oh that all of life’s decisions could be so easy. When I mark an
engagement on my calendar, I expect it to happen. However, situations and
events can overwhelm me, and plans go askew. If that happens, I tell myself God’s
in control. There’s a comforting verse, Ecclesiastes 3:1. “There is a time for
everything, and a season for every activity under heaven...”
About Gail Pallotta
Award-winning author Gail Pallotta’s a wife, Mom, swimmer and
bargain shopper who loves God, beach sunsets and getting together with friends
and family. She’s been a Sunday school teacher, a swim-team coordinator and an
after-school literary instructor. A former regional writer of the year for
American Christian Writers Association, she won Clash of the Titles in 2010. A
2013 Grace Awards finalist, she’s been a best-selling author on All Romance
eBooks and in amazon’s paid kindle store. She’s also published poems, short
stories, and several hundred articles. Some of her articles appear in
anthologies while two are in museums. Coming soon Barely above Water with Prism Book Group. Visit Gail’s web site at
http://www.gailpallotta.com.
Buy Links for Mountain
of Love and Danger:
Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NKV31LG
Barnes and Noble - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mountain-of-love-and-danger-gail-pallotta/1120360103?ean=2940046169652
Smashwords - https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/476357
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