04.04.08
Posted in Karen's Cafe at 8:55 pm by karenfar
Here we are already into April. It’s hard to believe that I’m here in the first week of April, back in the Sarasota/Bradenton area in the midst of a book signing, writing to you!
I want you to feel included in my signing. Tonight I am at the Village Voices Bookstore in the Village of the Arts in Bradenton, FL with my first two books out on display, The Christmas Wish & Love’s Last Betrayal. Both the owner and myself are excited that the rain held off for the night since the official reason for my signing is the Village is having a monthy Art Walk. This is where all of the local artists get together and open their shops to the public and everyone can come, stroll around, check out their wares and have a glass of wine and enjoy the atmoshere.
It’s amazing to me how many wonderful people you can meet during one of these nights. Even if I don’t sell a book (and that hasn’t happened to me yet), it’s exciting to hear where the people that stroll into the bookstore come from and what they do in their daily lives. So far tonight I’ve met several women from the great state of Mass. as well as Conn. Both women that were here from MA were “snowbirds” who had the best sense of humor I’d ever met.
Then I met a woman from Michigan who was a creative writing teacher who purchased one of my books to take home to have her ninth grade girls to read. I was so honored!! She was so much fun to talk to and now my book, Love’s Last Betrayal, will be passed around MI to 15 yr. olds to dissect. Can you imagine??
Just before it’s time to close up for the night, I ran into a couple of people that caused my brow to furrow. The most interesting part was that they actually belonged there. I don’t know who was more interesting…the daughter or the father. Ugh…how can you describe an artist that thinks they have a good sense of humor and, well, umm…doesn’t?!? At least, not one that I could locate anyway…then…it hit me. After writing so much, working so much, taking care of his extended family so much…there wasn’t anything left to bring forth a funny bone :> Regardless, this man has real talent as an artist and I’m looking forward to seeing his work. Especially since he’s going to help me develop my cover for my third bok, Forever Remember…
Although, all in all, it really was a good night. I sold books, met interesting people and jumped back into the business with both feet. So, welcome me back and read on I say!!
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03.10.08
Posted in Karen's Cafe at 8:46 am by karenfar
Not really…it feels that way I’m sure to the outside world, but really I’ve been here all along. I’ve been traveling up and down the frozen northeastern section of the United States trying to market my books as well as do research for new ones I might want to write :>
This year, as I’ve stated before, I plan on putting out several new books (only two more fiction) that will involve quite a bit of work to get accomplished. Especially the non-fiction ones. But, first, I need to get settled and situated back home in Forida before all of this can take place…so this is where I have been out-of-pocket for a while…
I’ve been in PA for the last four months working diligently on getting my first and second books to sell (so if you don’t already have a copy…they can be found for sale on my website www.kfjbooks.com) and sell well. So far, this endeavor has been difficult to say the least but will eventually pay off I’m sure. They say that it takes up to three years to get a book off of the ground but that’s a long time and I don’t have that long to wait. If you have any suggestions on how to sell more than one or two at a time or anyone you know that can help me in this endeavor, please pass those thoughts along. I’m always open to anything!
I will be writing consisitently over the next few weeks so please keep watch and keep in touch!
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02.14.08
Posted in Karen's Cafe at 9:32 am by karenfar
When you find that special one, your heart beats faster, everything in the world looks better and people who you’d normally not give a second thought to now get a warm smile from you…you’re in love. Or…so you think. Is it the real thing or is it just a passing fancy? Infatuation? Let’s explore what the signs for true love are and are not and find out the answer together…
One thing true love’s not, is hurried. Real love takes time. Have you ever heard the old adages, true love waits or that true love stands the test of time? Well they’re both accurate when it comes to real love. Genuine love is not something that happens overnight. Usually a good tell-tale sign that your love is real is that it grows in time. If you find yourself in a new situation and either you or your new partner wants to jump in with both feet and think about the consequences later then that usually signals infatuation or lust, not anything genuine or long lasting.
Is there such a thing as love and life long happiness?
I believe there is and here’s how I believe you can achieve it. First, it is both your ultimate right and responsibility to govern your heart in any of your interpersonal relationships, especially where romantic relationships are concerned. Keep both eyes open to the type of character your newfound beloved possess. Take a good honest look at the core beliefs of the person you’re finding yourself attracted to before you do anything else. That way you’ll protect your heart from getting broken…
Remember that out of the heart springs the issues of life so wherever your heart is that’s where your life heads and if it’s not real love and the two of you do not have a true commitment then you are inviting yourself into something that can be troublesome at best in the end. Decide on what’s best for you and your life and stick only with that no matter how attracted you are to that person. Let’s take this situation for instance, let’s say you meet someone and you feel instant “chemistry” with them. The two of you decide to take the next step and go out on a date and by the end of the night you are caught up in pure bliss. Where category do you think that would fall into…real love or infatuation?
It’s sad to say but many would call that real love, say it’s love at first sight or the beginning of something beautiful…I’m not saying it can’t happen, but in the real world, that usually spells out infatuation which will fade over the course of time if something more isn’t substantiated.
Commitment and communication is the key to a healthy long lasting relationship, and this “relationship of mutual benefit or pleasure” fits into the category of infatuation and again, once one side is not meeting the other’s needs then the relationship normally tends to dissolve and someone is left hurt and disillusioned. Real love is one that in most cases starts off as friendship and builds over time. That doesn‘t mean that you don‘t have those ooey gooey feelings just the same, it just means that the both of you took the time to sit back and nurture your budding relationship into one that means more than the here and now.
Each one of us is responsible for how we handle our physical attraction to another person. We have a choice at that first moment of pull whether or not we will run with our animal instincts or choose to allow ourselves to filter our instincts though our intellect and use our God given wisdom to guide the direction of the feeling we’re experiencing.
Let me reaffirm the fact that a healthy “real love” situation doesn’t come with all of the underlying questioning feelings that a relationship built on infatuation or lust does. So, unless you are only looking for a fling of sorts, open your eyes to the fact that real love isn’t built instantly, it takes time to develop and that you are more highly developed than an animal so don’t just go by your animal instincts when choosing your future mate.
Christian author and public speaker, Karen Farrell Jaworski, deals with love and many other contemporary women’s issues worldwide. You can go onto her website, www.kfjbooks.com, to learn more about her and find more articles like this or review her three powerful real-to-life dramas in the contemporary Christian women‘s fiction genre.
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02.08.08
Posted in So you want to write do you?? at 12:12 pm by karenfar
Have you ever wondered what a writer does all day? Do they sit and ponder what to put down on that blank computer screen? Or, do you think that they go take up residence at the local Starbucks and chat to everyone who comes in and out of the coffee shop all day? Get their story ideas that way…
Actually, it’s neither the drudgerous grind of sweating over the next looming deadline nor the life of Riley where the beach is their second home…it’s just like any other job you do except this one you don’t have to commute (or at least if you do, it’s to your own office). I am just a bit different than the average author who spends three to four hours a day writing as I am actually working on marketing my own books as well as writing them.
Although I have two jobs…my little grandson, Ethan, he’s my second but just as important job, takes up lots of my time too. An average day for me is getting up with him (he’s going to be two soon), getting my computer up and running and sitting down with my morning hot cocoa or green tea and beginning my blogging or marketing efforts.
I am currently working on four books. Two of them are fiction and two are non-fiction and it can be hard at times to switch between fantasy and reality within the same day. Writing fiction is more fun but publishing self-help non-fiction can be more rewarding. When I write, I get so absorbed in the story that I find myself dreaming about it that night. I’ve gotten up at night after dreaming about my story and hurriedly wrote down everything I could remember. That’s both the beauty and the curse of being an author. Your time is not your own when you’re involved in writing a book. It’s like your characters live inside of you and take over until they’re born into the hands of the waiting public through your published book.
Let’s see, how about taking the message you’re tryng to relay in your non-fiction book and putting it into practice before you put it into words? Some authors do that as a type of research before they allow any of their theories to be into the hands of others. Sounds like a good idea to me…
So, as you can see, there are many ways to spend your day as an author. In fact, many authors spend more time on the phone than they do on the computer trying to sell their product. It’s just as important for the average author to be their own salesperson as it is being a good writer. Especially if you’ve self-published. Most self-published authors after writing their self-published book spend countless hours trying to get it out in front of the people who can make it a success. I know for me, although I have a traditional publisher, I still need to do that very same thing so between putting together material for the new books, trying to take care of my family and making sure the bills get paid…I can be a very busy camper!! Then, of course, I wouldn’t have it any other way!
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01.24.08
Posted in Karen's Cafe at 10:53 am by karenfar
Just for today, imagine how good life can be. There is nothing standing in your way. All things are possible as long as you believe…
All of these things are positive sayings and are meant to help you, but do they really? How often do we hear these sayings and don’t give them a second thought? Then, on the other hand, how many lives they have changed? It all depends on you and what your belief system from your family of origin is. Do you believe that you deserve the best life has to offer or do you think that where you are now is all you will ever have.
There are two ways you can view yourself and your life; positively or negatively,…you have the choice.
You are valuable just because you are. Every person on the face of this earth has been created in God’s image. We all enter the world in the same way and we all leave this world the way we came in so it’s our free will to choose how we live our lives in the in-between time that makes the difference.
Studies show that identical twins raised by the same two parents in the same house all of their lives, grow up to lead very different lives. Even though they had the exact same stimuli throughout their formative years, their free will to make different life choices kicked in and led them down different paths.
Now, for you, think about where you are in life right now and where do you want to be. Do you see yourself heading in the right direction? Do your hopes, dreams, goals match how your live your life on a daily basis? If not, then you need to take a step back and see if it’s your belief system that’s standing in your way of the life you truly desire. If you see that it is, then here is the beginning of a new series of inspirational messages you’ll find on here that will show you how to make the changes necessary to get you back in the right direction and where you want to be.
Now, ask yourself honestly, do you wake up happy and feeling alive and full of joy, excited about starting the day, looking forward to going after your goals? If not, then it’s time to develop an attitude of gratitude. To do this, the first thing you need to do is sit down and find five things you’re grateful for and write them down n a piece of paper. The things you’re grateful for doesn’t have to be anything big, they can be as small as being thankful you woke up that morning. Next, take that list and life up a prayer thanking God for each item and if you do this every morning, after just a short time you’ll see how quickly your outlook on life will change for the better.
That’s the same way it was for Mary Warren in my first book, The Christmas Wish. No matter what happened to her, or how bad it got, she refused to succumb to the problem that pulled her down, but instead looked upward and kept believing that the Lord had her best interest in mind and trusted that her future was in His hands. It’s an incredible story of faith, family and how love can triumph over all and you can find out more information on this book and the other ones I have available at www.kfjbooks.com. I look forward to hearing from you and remember to tune in for the next segment…
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01.16.08
Posted in Karen's Cafe at 2:30 pm by karenfar
Today, I’m going to try something new. I’m going to write about something that’s close to my heart. Relationships and the health or the dysfunction of them. Can you imagine? A women’s author talking about love and relationships?!? GO figure…LOL.
Anyway, on a more serious note, love is the very thing that fuels our lives. Women and men alike love the idea of being “in love.” The euphoria of a new relationship…ah…there’s nothing like it. Then there’s the flip side. The breaking up and the relationships we stay in that are like poison to our souls. Why do we do it? We think…we can change them…if only they would just open their eyes and see the truth…
How could something that started out so good turn into something so bad? Yet we refuse to let go, thinking if only the other person would change or the situation surrounding the relationship would change then we’d be happy again…not necessarily so.
Happiness and a healthy relationship with anyone starts with us. We are the ones that we need to look at for our hapiness, not the ones we are involved with. Love is committment and work, not just a feeling we experience. Each one of us has to open our eyes and get past that misconceived notion of thinking that everything will be “perfect” if we just find the right person. And, of course, we all know that’s not true. It won’t be perfect. In fact, studies show that if we leave a relationship that has soured to the point of decimation and find a new person, the “baggage” we carry inside of us from that last person will eventually destroy that new relationship too if we’re not careful to clear out “our closet” first.
It starts with us. We need to recognize that it is of the upmost importance to take enough time after a failed relationship to ”search out and destroy” the misconceptions, wrong beliefs, habits, ect. that taint or sour anything new we get ourselves involved in. If we can do that, then automatically we are improving ourselves, raising our self-esteem and giving ourselves a whole other level of people to choose from. Automatically it improves the way we carry ourselves, thus improving the type of people we attract, making any new situation different than it would’ve been if we’d remained the same as before.
So, if something bad happens in your relationship and it ends, don’t run right back out there and jump right back into the dating pool. Give yourself a little time to heal (no matter what side of the dumping you were on) and do a little “inventory check” on yourself. See what role you played in the demise of that relationship and where you could improve for any future situations you might get yourself in.
Just like Jocelyn in my second book, Love’s Last Betrayal, who fell head over heels for the rich and powerful restaurant owner, Alex Giavonni. After Jocelyn gave her mind, body & soul to him, someone younger, more exciting came along and both he and Jocelyn took a ride neither one expected nor wanted to go on; Never to be the same again. This book takes you through a journey of decption and betrayal like no other when you see how far one person can go for the sake of “love.”
Read the first chapter of Love’s Last Betrayal on my website www.kfjbooks.com and tell me what you think. I can’t wait to hear what you think of the drama that befalls this beautiful couple. And, of course, as you look at them, remember don’t be afraid to work on you before love ”works” on you instead:>
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01.08.08
Posted in Karen's Cafe at 9:20 pm by karenfar
Here we are at day #7 and so far, there has been several posts on what’s been going on but nothing like today’s post. In the last week, I’ve worked on The Other Side of Addiction, The Long Road Home and Shattered Dreams manuscripts but haven’t taken a second look for Forever Remember’s query letter to resubmit it to the NYC agences. I had it under contract with The New York Literary Agency in NYC but after several months with nothing, I cancelled the contract and plan on putting it out on the market myself as soon as I get my new publishing agency opened up myself. It’s trying at best to segment myself this much but for the sake of the world’s hurting women…it’s not only necessary but worth every minute of it:>
Actually, today I was able to focus more than I had in days and it felt great to get some long awaited research paperwork done and out of the way. Just think…not only am I pulled in four different directions with the books, but I have a two year old in my care at the same time. Believe me, that’s a full time job all on its own! But…today just so happened to be a day where everything came together well and I was able to accomplish more than expected. Tomorrow, I will be posting some of my recent work and you can tell me what you think of it.
So far I haven’t heard a word from anyone so let’s get our reading done and our fingers ready to type so you can tell me what you think of each piece I post. Your opinion matters and I cannot wait to hear what you have to say!
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01.05.08
Posted in Karen's New Year Goals at 7:32 pm by karenfar
So what do you think of this blog so far? I would love to hear your comments!
It’s hard to believe that we’re already at day #5 on our daily log. So far, I’ve taken the opportunity to sit down and outline the newest book, The Other Side of Addiction. Just like clay, it’s interesting to see how nothing but a pile of notes can take shape in a short length of time when you put your mind to it.
I began writing this book over the last few years when I met and got involved with a Pastor’s son that I thought was “God’s best” for my life who turned out to be anything but. Not to get into all of the details, but it is shocking how some people can hide all of their issues behind the fact that they are a “Christian.” For me, I believe I was always meant to write this book…
There are so many areas now that I’ve gone through the experience of being with an addicted person where I can profess to be an “expert.” So, when you read this future book you will have been a part of it. You will have known what I thought, felt, went through each step of the way (by keeping up on this weblog) and “walk” with me as I prepare for what God has in store for this future mission.
So, how can you be a real part of this book?? Write to me. Tell me your story. Let me know what experience you’ve gone through with a loved one addicted to something. It doesn’t have to be alcohol or drugs…it could be shopping, gambling or even working too much. So, pass on anything you’d like me to know and I’ll see what I can do to get your story into my new book!
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01.04.08
Posted in Karen's New Year Goals at 7:05 am by karenfar
Today has been one of those days that I’ve been out and away from the computer so not much has gotten done in the way of writing. Can you imagine?? A writer not on her computer?!?
So what did I do all day? Good question. Where do I begin?
Right now as I write this I’m listening to Breath of Heaven by Amy Grant and she is talking about the Lord being with each and every one of us as we go through life. That is something more important than I think we all realize. In His word, Jesus says that He will never leave us nor forsake us yet we wonder when tough times come about where He is. Why He would desert us in our deepest time of need. Actually, He is always there…it’s US that goes away. Whether we want to admit it or not, we are the ones that run and hide and forget He is our one and only source of comfort and peace.
Similar to the main character, Mary Warren, in my first book, The Christmas Wish. She was the “perfect Christian” girl who saved herself for the man she expected God to bring into her life so she could fulfill her dream of getting married to her “soul mate” on Christmas Eve.
Little did she know that God had other plans. Shortly after she went off to college, Mary was brutally raped and got pregnant from the rape. What would she do next? What would you do?
Throughout the next several weeks, Mary had a choice to make. Several actually. First, she had to decide on whether or not she would keep the child growing in her womb and second she had to decide whether or not she trusted God enough through this storm to allow Him to be who He was in her life. Can you imagine how hard this would be?
Not that He brought trouble into her life, nor did He want to see Mary suffer in any way, but He allowed her to go through this trauma for many reasons. Now it was up to her whether or not she would abandon Him in her suffering or choose to accept what had happened and look to the Lord. Luckily for her she did just that. She chose life, allowed God to be God and through the midst of it all, her daughter brought the healing and restoration Mary needed to go on.
This amazing story of faith, trust and love is a good example of how God is always there in our ever present need…and that He never leaves us nor forsakes us.
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01.01.08
Posted in Karen's New Year Goals at 11:06 am by karenfar
It’s hard to believe that today is the first day of 2008! And, I’m sure as we all are right now, pictures of resolutions for the upcoming year are dancing through our minds. At least they are for the ones who didn‘t have as much to drink last night…
So, now that we’ve established the fact that most of us have things we want to work on in the coming year…what are some of those things you’re looking to change? Is it your pants or dress size? Maybe a bad habit or two? Maybe even finding that someone special this year? Regardless of what you have in mind, it is important to have some goals for yourself in the coming year.
For me, I plan on revamping everything! Can you imagine that? Everything. Yes, I know that’s a lot, but if I don’t start big I might not finish big either. So, why not go for the gusto right off the bat…right? To top it off, I want you all to know my goals for this year are so you can help keep me on track with my new plans. That is the key to this whole life change thing anyway - accountability. Isn’t it?
Remember if you really want to make a new change stick, tell someone about it. That way they can help encourage you through each step you take toward your new goal, keep you on track and let you know when you are getting too far away from where you want to be. So, here goes a list of things I want to accomplish or change over the course of the next year so you can be my accountability partner:
I plan on finishing my latest book, The Long Road Home, by the end of March.
I also plan on having out on the market (that means writing, editing and publishing both books) two non-fiction books, Shattered Dreams & The Other Side of Addiction by mid-to-late summer.
I plan on speaking at five different functions by September (cut back because of books) and five more by the end of the year.
I plan on acquiring a movie deal for Forever Remember by the end of summer.
And, last but not least, I plan on creating my own publishing firm and have it up and running by the end of the year.
Now, these are some very hefty goals that I’m sharing with you so I will need you to stop by this blog site and support me in this as often as you can. Keep up with where I am. Be my cyber friend and walk with me through it all. Starting tomorrow, January 2
nd, you will see a diary of sorts posted here in this letter’s place with each a section of the above goals listed and how much I’ve worked on each item so you can follow along with my progress. You can give me your feedback as well…and I look forward to hearing what you have to say, every step of the way.
This is going to be an exciting and adventurous 2008 and I look forward to having you as my new year’s resolution partner! Plus, feel free to share with me some of your New Year’s goals, hopes and dreams any time you’d like…I look forward to hearing from you!
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