Blog Contest Winner

Congratulations to Nicole Williams - winner of our blog contest! She answered the question correctly regarding the significance of the title Crossing Jhordan's River to the story itself.

In her email response, Nicole said:

The significance of the title"Crossing Jhordan's River" to the novel is that, Jhordan was unable to congueror his fear of trusting women, this was the major problem (river) in his life and marriage. So , in order for Jhordan to save his marriage he had to overcome his fears (cross the river) and reclaim his marriage and life.

Thank you for your participation, Nicole....and thank you to all others who responded. As the winning submission, Nicole will receive a FREE autographed copy of my hot-off-the-press title, Fifteen Years!

Here's Your Chance To Win A Free Book!

My latest novel, Fifteen Years, officially released on February 1, 2010, and I have partnered with Review magazine (click on the magazine's name to read my latest online interview) to give a free copy to one blog reader as a way to kick off the book's debut. To qualify for the free book, all you have to do is carefully read the information below....

In 2005, I released a book entitled Crossing Jhordan's River, which reached the #1 slot on Essence magazine's bestsellers list. I hope you were one of those who read it! It would help you to have a better chance of winning this contest. :-)

In order to have your name placed on the qualifying list to receive a free copy of Fifteen Years, you must do two things. First, if you are not already an official follower of the Blessed2Write Blog, you must click on the appropriate link to become one. And second, you will need to send an email directly to me at blessed_2_write@yahoo.com and tell me the significance of the title, Crossing Jhordan's River. In other words, how did the title of that book relate to the story?

The names of all those who answer correctly will be place in the qualifying bowl, and one blessed participant will receive a free personally autographed, hot-off-the-press copy of Fifteen Years! The clock is ticking. This contest is ONE DAY ONLY! I will announce the winner on tomorrow (Wednesday) night. Will it be you?

Make That A Triple!

Happy New Year to all of those who take the time to read the Blessed 2 Write Blog. I hope this year has gotten off to a great start for you. I believe that 2010 is a year of great things. During the Watch Night Service at my church here in Atlanta, Bishop Johnathan and Co-Pastor Toni Alvarado tag teamed together and preached a message titled "Continuing With The Lord." That's my aim, and I hope you'll make it yours too. I believe that by doing so, God will allow us to reap great rewards. Amen? Okay....that's the end of my mini-sermon. Now on to the blog! :-)

I'd announced on a few online forums a couple of weeks ago, that God had handed me a double blessing in the month of January. Well, make that a triple! The year 2010 has met me with three wonderful honors thus far....To God Be The Glory!
First, I was one of the recipients of the "Best Series Books of the Decade" award, which is an honor that was given to twenty African American authors by Ella Curry and EDC Creations. The award recognizes authors who the judging committee viewed as those who rendered the most outstanding series books between the years 2000-2009. This honor is particularly humbling for me because the judges didn't just focus on Christian fiction books. They looked at all of the books of every fiction genre that was released from every African American author over the past ten years and named those that they felt had written the best series. And my books in the Shelton Heights Series (In Greene Pastures, Battle of Jericho, and The Lyons Den) made the list!
My second honor was to be chosen to grace the cover of the new "The Grove" online literary magazine. The magazine's creator, Brian W. Smith, approached me several weeks ago and asked if I would consider being one of the authors that he would feature in his inaugural issue. The edition released a couple at the beginning of the year. In it are insightful interviews that were conducted with me and the other cover authors: Mary "Honey B" Morrison, Kimberla Lawson Roby, and T-Styles. To read the online magazine, click HERE. This particular complimentary edition will be available online for viewing through the end of January 2010. If you'd like to have access to future issues, subscriptions are available on the website as well. To read the magazine, click on the upper right corner of each page to make them turn. Technology is amazing, isn't it? :-)
The third honor I received was that for the first time, one of my novels was chosen as a "Featured Pick" by Black Expressions Book Club. Several of my novels have been made available in the hardcopy format through Black Expressions, and many of them have been chosen as "alternate picks," but my new January release, The Morning After (with co-author, Hank Stewart) is the first to be chosen a "featured pick." This may seem like a small thing to some, but for me, it was a prayer answered, and I consider it a blessing and an honor. If you are a member of Black Expressions Book Club, please consider accepting the automatic shipment of this book and add it to your library. The Morning After is the long-awaited sequel to Three Fifty-Seven A.M., and is the final installment in what has been dubbed the "God's Timing Series." Pick up a copy wherever books are sold. I'm certain that you will enjoy reading this dramatic and inspiring story.
I'm grateful for the early blessings that I have enjoyed in the year 2010, and as I thank God for those, I also thank Him in advance for those that I pray are to come.

I Believe I'll Run On...And Walk On...And Write On

I'm not one of those fortunate people who can eat all they want and never have to exercise or worry about weight gain. Those people, quite frankly, make me sick. I'm kidding (but not really). I'm also not one of those "either/or" people who can get by with either eating right or exercising. As a health advocate, I have done extensive reading and research to self-educate myself on which foods will render a healthy dose of good nourishment without packing on the pounds. And in the six years that I spent as a certified group fitness instructor, teaching aerobics classes at various local gyms across metropolitan Atlanta, I was well-versed in what to do in order to build a healthy heart and fit body. But what I have found is that if I eat right and don't exercise regularly...or exercise and don't eat properly, I fail in my efforts to keep fit. If I want to maintain a healthy weight, I have to do both. I know that to be true because in the last four months, I've maintained a relatively healthy diet, but due to my heavy workload, I didn't make the time to exercise like I should have. As a result, I've gained six pounds. Ughhhh...those evil little scale crushers!
Monday morning, for the first time since the end of August, I got out of bed, and after spending time in prayer and meditiation, I hit the gym. The one hour session that had become second nature for me months ago was tedious to get through today. I had to pep talk my way through those miles that I walked the threadmill on an uphill incline. And when I erased the incline so that I could throw in a few high speed sprints on level grounding, I found myself switching from pep talking to downright praying. By the time I made it to the weight bench and began churning out chest presses, bicep curls, and tricep dips, I was ready to start speaking in tongues. And those crunches... Man! What a difference (and not in a good way) that four-month hiatus from the gym made. I have truly learned my lesson. Getting back on the exercise wagon wasn't easy, but I've done it. The hardest part - that first day - is behind me, and I'm back on track now, and the strides of day one already have me pumped up to take on day two.
The point I'm trying to make (I took the long route to make this point because the long route burns more calories) is that if you want to do anything well, and if you desire for it to become less of a chore, you've got to do it regularly. A few more daily visits to the gym, and my workouts will become second nature once again. That's just the way it is. The more you do a thing, the more natural it becomes. It may not be easy, and it may call for a little schedule shifting and a little sacrifice, but once you get accustomed to doing it routinely, it becomes a normal part of your daily schedule. And that includes PROCRASTINATING. That's right. The more you put things off, the easier it becomes to put things off. Like my exercising. Notice I said because of my workload, I didn't make the time to exercise. It wasn't that I couldn't exercise, I just didn't make it a priority.
Anyone who has taken any of my Writer's Cocoon Workshops have heard me say it. Writer's write. Anybody can talk about writing a book, but only a writer actually writes one. Talk is cheap....and useless without following it up with action. I'm a firm believer that anything you want to accomplish, you'll do what you have to do to accomplish it. You may have a full day of activities on your schedule. Work....family....laundry....cooking....cleaning....eating....most of us share those duties. They are not viable excuses. If you want to get that book written, you have to make the time to do it. Plain and simple. Donate thirty of those minutes that you spend sitting in front of the television. Sacrifice fifteen minutes of sleep time. Better yet, give your writing at least one of those four hours you spend on Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter telling everybody in cyberspace your business. Use that time to hit the literary gym. Exercise your creative writing skills. Put that energy into lifting a pen and pad or burning calories by allowing your fingers to dance across a computer keyboard as you type out that manuscript. Lose the fat of procrastination and build the muscle of achievement! It will be a challenge at first, but mark my words...the more you do it, the easier it will be come.
There is an old church song that says, "I believe I'll run on and see what the end is gonna be..." The only way we will ever see our literary goals achieved is by daring to get in the uncomfortable position of taking the first step. Once we've done that, the hardest part is over. The finish line is within reach....

Run on...walk on...write on!

Happy Birthday To Me

Life is so beautiful. It's not always easy. It's not always what we expect. There are times when we struggle, times when we are sick, times that we are mistreated, times when life throws us curve balls, times when we grieve devastating losses, and even times when we think it can't get any worse. But regardless of its challenges and pitfalls, life is still beautiful, and I'd prefer it over the alternative anyday.
On December 17th, I celebrated my 43rd birthday....to God be the glory! Yes, I know that each year that passes is a reminder of the aging process, and maybe I'm crazy....but with each passing year, I feel younger and more zestful than ever. It's not because I'm rolling in dough or living in the lap of luxury. I'm far from it. In fact, financially, the year 2009 has been the most difficult that I've ever endured as an adult. But on Thursday, my 43rd birthday, I still felt like celebrating all day long.
In fact, the festivities began the night before. One of my best girlfriends treated me to an Atlanta Hawks game. It had been several years since I'd gone to one, and I'm not really a sports fan, but I had a blast just hanging out with my sisterfriend and cheering for the home team. Final score...Atlanta Hawks 110, Memphis Grizzlies 97. On Thursday morning, I got up thanking God for another inhale and exhale; another chance to celebrate life and for the mudslide of blessings that He has given me over the past 43 years. After my morning devotion and getting dressed, I stood by the staircase of my home and called for my older daughter, who is home from college for Christmas break, and asked her to take photos of me so that I could capture year 43 the same why I had done 40, 41, and 42. I don't know...but ever since turning 40, life has had new meaning; a new spice has added that has given it new flavor. I placed the first photo I took as the first one in this post and the last one as the last photo on this post. After my amateur photo shoot, my daughter and I jumped in the car and drove to Radio Shack where I blessed myself with an upgrade from the Sony Ericsson that I'd had for the past two or three years. While so many have now moved up to the iPhone, I'm just reaching BlackBerry status. I chose the BlackBerry Curve 8900 and have spent hours both hating and enjoying the process of learning how to use it (I think I've finally gotten the hang of it though).
When my younger daughter arrived home from high school, we were making plans for my birthday dinner. It's an annual event for me. Every birthday, my one wish is that my family and I all go out and eat together. But like I said...sometimes life throws curve balls. En route from work, my husband got stuck in a major traffic jam behind a five-car accident that had all lanes of the highway closed. Time ticked away as he sat frustrated on the interstate. Finally he called and said for the girls and me to go out, promising that we'd do something as a family later. Our plans were forced to change, but the dinner was still a treat. I thoroughly enjoyed what had become a girls' night out as my daughters and I dined at Chilli's, one of my favorite eaterys. After feasting on a basket of chips and salsa, I chose shrimp and fries as my celebratory meal. Simple but delicious. The waiter gave me a free dessert (chocolate cake and ice cream) to mark the occasion (thank goodness I didn't have to endure the embarrassment of a stream of servers standing over me clapping and singing off-key). I broke every one of my eating rules when I ate that dessert, but oh well... :-)

December 17th was a day filled with cards, gifts, food, photos.....and writing. Oh come on...you knew I had to get some writing done, right? What's a birthday without writing (LOL). I received tons of thoughtful well-wishes on my Facebook, MySpace, and Tagged networks......some from people I know and others I don't, but I was grateful for each and every one. I am extremely appreciative for all the gifts, both virtual and actual that I received, but as with most people, I have a personal favorite among them. What was my favorite gift to mark my 43rd birthday? A serenade. I received a special rendition of "Happy Birthday" by way of a phone call from my all-time favorite gospel singer....a six-time Grammy nominated, 3-time Stellar Award winning legend. If you really know me, you know who that is. If you don't know who it is, I'll just leave you guessing (smile).

Happy Birthday to me.....

Introducing SECRETS AND LIES by Rhonda McKnight

About the Book:

Faith Morgan is struggling with her faith. Years of neglect leave her doubting that God will ever fix her marriage. When a coworker accuses her husband, Jonah, of the unthinkable, Faith begins to wonder if she really knows him at all, and if it’s truly in God’s will for them to stay married.

Pediatric cardiologist Jonah Morgan is obsessed with one thing: his work. A childhood incident cemented his desire to heal children at any cost, even his family, but now he finds himself at a crossroads in his life. Will he continue to allow the past to haunt him, or find healing and peace in a God he shut out long ago?

About the Author:

Rhonda McKnight owns Legacy Editing, a free-lance editing service for fiction writers and Urban Christian Fiction Today, a popular Internet site that highlights African-American Christian fiction. She’s also the vice president of the Faith Based Fiction Writers of Atlanta. Originally from a small coastal town in New Jersey, she’s called Atlanta, Georgia home for almost twelve years.

Rhonda, tell us how you came up with the idea for this story? I woke up one morning and these people were talking in my head, or rather arguing. (LOL). I thought this could be interesting, turned on the creativity, and came up with the “issues” in their marriage. I also did a lot of research about heart disease. Jonah is a pediatric cardiologist and that’s central to the story. I knew absolutely nothing about heart disease before I wrote this novel.

Who is your ideal reader? I think most people will think my ideal reader is women who are married. While I think the book will definitely appeal to married women, I’d love for single women who are thinking about marriage or waiting on Mr. Right to read the book. There is a valuable lesson for single women in the story. Faith chose to overlook a very important issue prior to her marriage to Jonah. This issue becomes a huge source of pain for her. Ten years later her ideal black man has her pulling her hair out.
Name something about the book that will appeal to readers? I think readers will find it appealing, because more than half of it is written from Jonah’s point of view. My informal research amongst readers has taught me that women readers love stories that are written from a man’s perspective. Like most men, Jonah is complex. He’s a love to hate kind of guy. People will love him because he’s dedicated his life to physically healing children, but he’s emotionally and spiritually sick himself. What a burden for Faith. Faith’s pain will have some folks shaking their heads at Jonah.
When’s your next book being released? My second novel, An Inconvenient Friend comes out August 1, 2010. I have a nasty little character in Secrets and Lies who gets her own story, and what a story it is. She’s up to no good. Can she be redeemed?How can readers find out more about you? Readers may contact me at my website at http://www.rhondamcknight.net/. I love for people to sign my guestbook and share their thoughts about the story. I’m also a complete Facebook addict. You’ll definitely find me there more than you should at www.facebook.com/rhondamcknight.

Click HERE to order Secrets And Lies now!

Thankful, In Spite Of...

The year 2009 has been a challenging one. Not for a modest few, but for many. Rare to find are those who have not been affected in some direct way by the recession that has plagued our country. The U.S.'s economic problems didn't just start this year, but they certainly worsened. Decrease in healthcare benefits, mounting job losses, shifting gas prices, record company closures, increased theft reports...all of it is largely due to the economy, and all of it has touched each of us in one way or the other.
In times like these, when we cannot necessarily cite a long list of materialistic things for which to be grateful, we sometimes find ourselves waddling in self-pity. Then instead of counting the blessings that we do have, we gripe about those things that we don't have. But as I now sit in my home office, taking a break from an editing assignment as this great holiday winds down, I am full of thanksgiving. This year has been trying for me, and the challenges have been great. But the same God that had been good in the time of plenty has remained good in the lean time. Yes, there were days when finances fell short and days when there was more month than money. But on this Thanksgiving Day, I have been determined to be thankful in spite of.

All that I want may not be visible before my eyes, but I have been provided with all that I need. No, my bank account does not qualify me to rank among the wealthiest authors in the industry, but as Proverbs 10:22 says, The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it. Therefore I am richer than so many whose bank accounts are running over. I have an abundance of faith - For what does it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (Mark 8:28); an understanding of God's Word - With all thy getting, get an understanding (Prov. 4:7), and a respected name in the literary industry where I've been placed to serve in ministry - A GOOD name is rather to be chosen than great riches (Prov. 22:1). Those things that money cannot buy are perhaps the things for which we should be most grateful. They are certainly the things that I am most thankful for this year.
I had a conversation with a long time friend and supporter on last week who had just suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed on one side and unable to walk on his own accord. When he revealed his current situation to me, my heart immediately saddened, and I prayed inwardly for something to say to him that would give him hope. But it only took a few seconds for me to realize that my hospitalized friend didn't need my sympathy, and he had enough hope to spare. Before I could form a word, he continued to tell me how grateful he was. "It could have been worse," he said, and then he went on to give God thanks and praise for what was versus what could have been. Instead of me building his faith, he built mine. When I ended the call with him, I began to thank God too. I thanked Him for sparing my friend's life and for giving him back the full use of his extremities (I claimed that one by faith).
When we learn to thank God in spite of, I believe that it is then that we are blessed to see the overflow that He has stored up for us. If we can't be grateful for what we have, how can God trust us with the abundance that He has on standby? So for the few hours that are left in this Thanksgiving Day, I will continue to give God the praise; not only for what I have today, but for those things that I know that He will bless me with on tomorrow...and the next day...and the next day....and the next day...

What things are you thankful for? In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you (I Thessalonians 5:18).