Friends, I am thrilled to welcome debut author Stacy Wise to the pond today. Her NA, BEYOND THE STARS, released on Feb. 8, 2016, and it sounds like so much fun!
Here is Stacy, to answer our question of the month:
What is something in my life that’s quintessentially me?
Gah! One thing? What on earth could it be?
I strolled though my house, pausing by shelves, lingering by the console table as though I was admiring relics at a museum. Could I be somewhere in the lovely ceramic turtle I bought in Hawaii? The one whose head broke off in an unfortunate accident with a ball and my youngest child? (I glued it back on. Looks great.) Perhaps it’s my shell collection? Or my children’s art table with the crayons organized by color? No…Maybe it’s the Legos that seem to magically appear underfoot when I’m barefoot? Hell no.
And then it hit me. It’s the piece of wall art I had to buy because it got me all choked up at the local Aaron Brothers Art Mart. I felt like Oprah having an A-ha! moment.
Here’s what it says:
Be bold enough to use your voice
Brave enough to listen to your heart
And strong enough to live the life you’ve always imagined.
“What if I fall?”
Oh, but my darling…what if you fly?
Kind heart fierce mind brave spirit
–E.H.
E.H., I discovered, is Erin Hanson, a young Australian poet. The plaque hangs in my kitchen nook where I can read it every day. Because those words? They keep the fire lit in me. I hope they inspire you too.
Xo,
Stacy
BEYOND THE STARS: Most girls would kill for the opportunity to work for Jack McAlister, Hollywood’s hottest actor, but twenty-one-year-old Jessica Beckett is ready to kick him out of her red Ford Fiesta and never look back. She should be spending her junior year in France, eating pastries and sharpening her foreign language skills. Instead she’s reluctantly working as Jack’s personal assistant, thanks to her powerhouse talent agent aunt.
Jack is private, prickly, and downright condescending. Jessica pushes his buttons—she’s not the type of girl to swoon over celebrity heartthrobs, precisely why her aunt thought she’d be perfect for the job—and Jack pushes right back.
But as she begins to peel away his layers, Jessica is shocked to find she craves her boss’s easy smile and sexy blue eyes. The problem is, so does the entire female population. And what started out as the job from hell soon has Jess wondering if a guy like Jack could ever find love with a regular girl like her.
Stacy Wise is the author of BEYOND THE STARS (Entangled Embrace, 2016).
She has a B.A. in Communications Studies from UCLA and a Masters in Teaching from Chapman University. She lives in California with her husband and four children.
When she’s not dreaming up stories, you can find her beating up the bag at a kickboxing gym, cheering for her kids at their numerous sporting events, or walking her dogs, Bailey and Rex.
Welcome to the pond, Stacy! I **love** your Kind Heart Fierce Mind Brave Spirit thinking!
Thanks so much, Susan! 🙂