Thanks for the Input!
I want to personally thank everybody for their input on Pretty Packages. All of it was helpful, even the input that made me revisit why I entered the Secular market in the first place. I needed to reaffirm my peace in that area. Needed to make sure I hadn’t gotten off track somewhere.
To the person that prompted that re-visitation, I want to say a fond THANK YOU for having my spiritual back. I need people who aren’t afraid to call me on the carpet about a few things, even if we end up agreeing to disagree.
Now, in case y’all are wondering which line I finally decided to put/keep Pretty Packages under, it is the Secular line. Here’s why:
1. I can reach more people this way. People who may never go in the Inspirational section of a bookstore, never pick up a Bible, and never go to a church. I'm counting on God to use Pretty Packages (and other books like it) to plant seeds of hope and inspiration into the hearts and minds of the people that I just described above. In order to do that, I need to keep the book in a category that they will be quicker to gravitate to.
2. I didn't want to dilute the fiery attraction between Giada and
3. Because of an email that I received from another Christian woman named Clara Ehikioya. Clara almost single-handedly caused me to put Pretty Packages under the Inspirational line. In her very detailed email, she began to list all the life lessons she got out of Pretty Packages. Lessons that include (shortened for brevity):
- Have faith in yourself as a person regardless of your facial attributes and physical features. They are nothing compared with the real 'you'.
- Learning to respect our bodies instead of using them in unpleasant ways to make money.
- How life is too short to waste one minute with the wrong person.
- How important it is to be forgiving. Whatever is in the past should be left there. How this lesson was demonstrated a lot throughout the book (Our precious sista Clara even named the instances where she’d seen it in the book. It made me tear up).
- How we should pursue worth-while ventures instead of indulging in extravagant lifestyle.
- The virtue of telling the truth at all times.
- How important it is to accept a person in totality knowing that each one has his or her personality and individuality.
And that’s not even listing all of Clara’s points. lol. I love it!
Anyway, Clara then went on talk about the image builders she saw in Pretty Packages and how they affected the lives of others, how the book was a motivator and had life lessons for everyone. She was able to pull all this from the book, despite some of the raw scenes.
Do you see why I HAD to leave Pretty Packages in the Secular line? More than just Christians need to be exposed to such lessons. These lessons need to be made available to ALL!
So it’s official, y’all. Pretty Packages will remain in the Secular line.
Now…
*whispering to my dear friends*
Because you were so kind as to read this long post (lol) and so kind to even visit my websites period, I want to give you a gift. Another FREEBIE. Yay!
This one is a short story (entitled The Professor) that I’m offering for FREE on lulu.com. And don’t worry, there is no 2008 expiration date for this book. The Professor will remain free until I expand the storyline sometime in 2009. And believe me, after you read this story, you’re going to want it to be extended.
Keep in mind that The Professor is under my Secular line, too, so you can elect not to read it if that line is not appealing to you.
For those who are interested in reading The Professor, here’s the link and the blurb to get you started. And THANKS again, everybody!
Enjoy!
Blurb for The Professor:
Willing to do whatever it takes to finish college and help her family out of poverty, Aurelia Bunting does the very thing that she hates – she becomes an exotic dancer. On top of that, her steady boyfriend just cheated on her with her best friend and she has a large tuition bill due.
Fresh from a breakup, too, Professor Baron Weaver is not so deep in grief to overlook the beautiful
Since anonymity is key at events like these, Aurelia has no idea that the man she’s dancing for is going to be one of her new professors this year. If either of them had known, they would have never even considered finding comfort in each other’s arms.
Link to download The Professor:
http://www.lulu.com/content/3070207
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