Definition of spotlight:  something that illuminates brilliantly.

About the Book

Book: What Color is God’s Love?

Author: Xochitl Dixon

Genre: Children’s Picture Book

Release date: March 19, 2024

All the colors displayed in this world that God made—
every glorious, fabulous, beautiful shade—
show how good God is and will always be.
But what is the color of love? Come and see!
In What Color is God’s Love?, a little girl and her service dog join their diverse friends through a
whirlwind of adventures. As they celebrate the spectacular spectrum of colors God designed,
each color invites readers to explore their God-given emotions and becomes a reminder of God’s
unchanging character. While encouraging children to acknowledge God’s constant presence with every turn of the page,
What Color is God’s Love? also empowers children, with and without disabilities, to play, work,
and serve God together, by simply letting the colors of His love shine through them.
With each turn of the page, the focus shifts to a specific color—orange, yellow, blue, green, pink,
black, white, gray, brown, red, purple. Each lyrical rhyme invites readers to engage with God
through empowering and faith-building truth-statements that incite worship and encourage a
lifestyle of loving God and neighbors.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Xochitl (So-Cheel) Dixon, contributing writer for Our Daily Bread and God Hears Her, is the author of
Waiting for God: Trusting Daily in God’s Plan and Pace. She loves Jesus and people, as she crosses
cultural, generational, and international lines with encouraging and sound biblical teaching. Celebrating
diversity and inclusion, she advocates for disability awareness with her beautifully diverse family and her
service dog, Callie. Her first children’s picture book, Different Like Me, now available in Spanish, is a
2021 ECPA Christian Book Award Children’s Book Finalist. In March 2024, Xochitl’s second picture book, What Color is God’s Love?, is releasing with WaterBrook.

More from Xochitl

The Heart Behind My Story

By Xochitl Dixon

Like most of my writing, What Color is God’s Love? began as an overflow of worship while I prayed and praised God. In 2018, my husband and I had followed God from California to Wisconsin. I’m disabled and can’t drive, so his long hours at work left me feeling isolated while I searched for a new church and new doctors. As the weather became more extreme, I grew more discouraged, frustrated, and resentful. I struggled as I wrote my first 31-day devotional for Our Daily Bread, Waiting for God: Trusting Daily in God’s Plan and Pace. I was praying for people, studying and teaching the Bible every day. So, I couldn’t figure out why I felt so out of touch with God.

When my new puppy, Callie, licked my tears away, I looked out the window and noticed the rain had finally stopped. Rays of sunlight pierced through the dark gray clouds, shining on a white heron that had landed in the greed foliage on the creek’s bank next to our front yard. I wept tears of grateful praise. I wrote the first draft of a free verse poem celebrating God’s loving care for the details in Creation and in the lives of His people.

As I prayed, I realized I had been spending time talking to people about God. However, as the physical, emotional, and mental effects of our transition overwhelmed me, I had stopped spending quality time with God. As I watched the white heron take flight, God led me to Psalm 33:6-9, which became the first What Color is God’s Love? Bookend Bible verse.

I released Waiting for God in 2019 and my first picture book, Different Like Me, in 2020. But God had me tuck that free verse poem away as He dramatically transformed me and the original manuscript over the next few years. I wanted to give young image-bearers what I never had growing up: a safe place to process emotions . . . in God’s presence. I also wanted God’s beautifully diverse image-bearers, people with and without disabilities, to see each color as a reminder of His unchanging character, unlimited power, and unwavering grace, as they experienced His unconditional love flowing for them, in them, and through them.

After I signed the contract in November 2021, God began leading me to the right Bible verses to build the messages for each color I shared. Over time, I created the Breath Prayer Cards as a free download on my website, the YouVersion reading plan, and the devotional for the rest of the colors not shared in the reading plan.

I wanted each color to be a reminder of God’s unchanging character, unlimited power, and unwavering grace as we experience His unconditional love flowing for, in, and through us. More importantly, I began praying that everyone who read What Color is God’s Love? would be inspired to open their Bibles and spend more time with God, including me.

My Interview with Xochitl

I love meeting new authors. Especially those who write good children’s books. Let’s get to know Xochitl a bit better!

Xochitl, thank you for joining us today! Can you tell us you decided to write fiction?

I didn’t decide to write fiction, but fiction is a big part of my writing journey. My mom
nurtured a love for reading and creative writing ever since I was a kid. So, I was always a
storyteller. I would make up stories and act them out as a child. I won my first Young
Authors Award when I was in 3 rd Grade with a story I wrote and illustrated, Sonny Otter and
the Four Seasons.
After I surrendered my life to Jesus in 2001, I started reading the Bible and loved teaching
the Bible. So, I prayed: “Lord, I want to share Your truth and love to the ends of the earth,
and I don’t care how!”
I began writing contemporary novels for teens and women but didn’t attend my first
Christian writers conference until 2010. However, when I went to my next conference in
2011, God led me to write devotions and opened the door to the ministry of magazine
writing. I sold my first devotion and six short stories for teens at that conference.
I edited a few Bible studies for teens with an editor I met at the conference in 2010. When
she moved to Our Daily Bread in 2015, she recommend me for an interview. I started serving
as a contributing writer for Our Daily Bread in 2015.
So, fiction writing has contributed to strengthening my voice over the years. Using fiction
writing elements, I can create tension, engage the readers’ five senses, and evoke emotions as
I draw them into each devotion with. In picture books, even when I’m writing in rhyme,
these skills create more powerful images for readers. The use of sound, repetition, rhythm,
imagery, and engaging the five senses connects readers to the characters, even when it’s a
first-person narrative.
ODB published my first 31-day devotional, Waiting for God: Trusting Daily in God’s Plan
and Pace, in 2019, and my first children’s book, Different Like Me, in 2020, which has been
translated into Dutch, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, and is now available in Hong Kong!
I have a new devotional being released by Our Daily Bread in 2025. I just released my
second children’s book with WaterBrook, What Color is God’s Love?, and my third
children’s book, Wonderfully, Marvelously Brown, is available for pre-order now. I’ve even
been able to contribute to Tyndale’s Go Bible for Kids, which releases Fall 2024.
So, though writing in multiple genres is difficult, God has used my fiction writing skills to
expand my reach.

I’m curious how you come up with your plots?

I get most of my ideas when I’m reading the Bible and praying. I’m a cinematic writer, so God gives me ideas in scenes. I know my beginning, middle, and end before I even start a project. I usually know my working title, too. I know the heart of the message, the takeaway, and the Bible verses that I want to build the message on before I start. I can’t start without the Bible verses. Even my children’s books have Bookend Bible Verses, two Bible verses on which I can build the main message.

How do you research for your stories?
I start with spending time with God. Once He gives me the idea for a story, I start the rough
draft. If I need to research, I use Logos Software and my old school concordance and other Bible scholar books from my home library for biblical research. I do a lot of research online, since I can’t drive. I interview people for a lot of my nonfiction writing. If they give me information that needs research, I start looking online. I like to go to the source, if possible. If I can travel to interview someone or to take photos. I love the library! I’d be there almost ever day of the week if I could drive!

Have you ever read a book that made you cry?
Do you mean . . . Have I ever read a book that doesn’t make me cry? If a book is supposed to
have a sad part in it, I will probably cry. I also enjoy writing stories that make readers feel . . .
and cry . . . as long as they end with hope.

What is your favorite vacation spot?
I could vacation in Hawaii every year and be happy! My dream is to retire in Hawaii and write
from a house on the beach. I’ve actually prayed that prayer and am trusting that God just might make that happen one day. He has surprised me with even greater things before, so why not a Hawaiian beach house?

Thanks for being with us Xochitl. I hope my readers will get a copy of your book for that favorite child in their lives!

Blog Stops

Lots of Helpers, April 24

Texas Book-aholic, April 25

Vicky Sluiter, April 26 (Author Interview)

BookZone Reviews , April 27

By The Book, April 28 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, April 28

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, April 29

Splashes of Joy, April 30 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, May 1

Beauty in the Binding, May 2 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, May 3

Sylvan Musings, May 4 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, May 4

Artistic Nobody, May 5

Blossoms and Blessings, May 6 (Author Interview)

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, May 7

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Xochitl is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card, a copy of Different Like Me, and What Color is God’s Love?!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link to enter.

About the Book

Book: Call to Embrace

Author: Maryann Landers

Genre: Christian Women’s Fiction

Release Date: November 1, 2023

She’s detached in a stormy marriage because of both of their unfaithfulness. Now she faces the aftermath of her compromise with an unwanted pregnancy. Will fleeing bring her the freedom she yearns for?

Emily Corentin wants to escape the jagged edges of her brokenness. She believes the only option she has is to take her young daughter, leave her husband, and end the unintended pregnancy with an abortion. But her plans take an unexpected turn when the homeless shelter she finds is not the type of help she wanted. She’d buried religion years ago with the death of her Gran. Any God-fearing place will only confirm how much God abandoned her.

An offer from a shelter volunteer may be the lifeline she and her daughter need, but Emily only sees it as a means to an end. The unlikely friendship that follows, draws her closer to the answers she may have carried with her all along. But rash decisions bring new challenges that drag her further into a sea of helplessness.

When all hope is lost in despair will she be washed away by the patterns of her past? Or will she answer the call to embrace the mercy of the cross and in turn bring reconciliation to her marriage?

Cick here to get your copy!

About the Author

Alaskan based author Maryann Landers writes women’s faith filled fiction based on true stories of extraordinary women of her magnificent state. She loves to showcase the unique north and give her readers a little taste of rustic Alaska.

While writing in her log home in the woods she is also looking forward to her next adventure with her Alaskan husband, juggling mom tasks such as crafting homemade meals from moose and caribou meat, building DIY projects from scrap wood piles and guiding her teens in their homeschooling.

Her first novel in the Alaskan Women of Caliber Series; Alaskan Calibration released June 2021.

More from Maryann

Call to Embrace is inspired by a true story of a young mom that I met over 13 years ago as I walked alongside her during a difficult time of her life. A year and a half ago I stood in the Pacific Ocean dip netting for salmon near the mouth of the Kenai River. As the waters tugged at my waders, I remembered the church set on the hill behind me where a cross is always lit as a beacon and I thought there is a story here. With anticipation, I prayed what God wanted me to share. What unfolded is the plot line of my friendship with that young mom set in the stunning geographical area of South-Central Alaska.

Author Interview with Maryann!

I love having the opportunity to chat with our authors. I hope you enjoy getting to know Maryann a bit better!

Maryann, thank you for being with us today. Can you tell us why you decided to write fiction?

I wanted to share stories of women I know and to do so they needed to be fiction. It makes the stories more relatable.

Writing takes an imagination. How do you come up with your plots?

They are all inspired by people I know. I interview them and form the plot based on the real events.

Do you ever name your characters after people you know?

I take the name of the person I’m writing about and find a name with the same
meaning.

How do you research for your stories?

For characters it’s through interviews. For the setting each of my stories has been set where either I’ve lived or visited.

Do real life stories get turned into fiction plots?

Yes, this is true about each of my stories.

Do you have an interesting writing quirk?

Not that I know of.

Have you ever read a book that made you cry?

Oh my yes! And most of my own books make me cry which seems pathetic.

Important question! What’s your favorite kind of ice cream?

I’m not good a picking favorites when it comes to most things. I enjoy a variety of chocolate ice cream.

What is your favorite vacation spot?

Visiting family in Southern Utah when it’s winter here and comfortably warm there.

What is your funniest typo?

I wish I could think of something to share here but I can’t.

Thanks for being with us, Maryann. Readers, please make sure to check out her book!

Blog Stops

The Sacred Line Lit, March 11

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 12

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, March 13 (Author Interview)

Lots of Helpers, March 13

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, March 14

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 15

Artistic Nobody, March 16 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, March 17

Splashes of Joy, March 18 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 19

JESUS in the EVERYDAY, March 20

A Reader’s Brain, March 21 (Author Interview)

Inspired by Fiction, March 21

Cover Lover Book Review, March 22

Pause for Tales, March 23

Vicky Sluiter, March 24 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Maryann is giving away the grand prize package of a Alaskan themed gift pack including: one signed copy of the book, a half pint sized jar of canned salmon (caught and canned by the author from the mouth of the Kenai river where the book is set), a cross necklace and a promo code for a free audiobook version of the novel!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link to enter.

About the Book

Book: Mojave Rock

Author: JW Gilbert

Genre: Christian Fiction – Action/Adventure

Release Date: March, 2024

Arcon forsook his new life of adventure in the outside world to fulfill his destiny with ArcPoint. But the return to his forest home is short-lived—he and Ranger Dan have been called to Jerusalem to meet Central Authority and discover the fate of ArcPoint. A new adventure begins, starting with a round-the-world trip by tube train—something Arcon never thought possible. With its expanded cast of extraordinary characters and a fresh romance, Mojave Rock is the conclusion to the ArcPoint trilogy about reconciliation and truth replacing fear and suspicion.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

John Gilbert Wozniak (JW Gilbert) grew up in an Oregon farm town. He retired in 2016 as an international data center cooling expert. Around the turn of the century, he began writing as a hobby. After years of expert guidance and a lot of editing, his ArcPoint trilogy is complete. His intent is to write books that are enjoyed by all ages—biblically accurate—with a touch of adventure, romance, and humor. JW has been married to his best friend Darlene since 1980. They are both retired and enjoy the hobby of creating lapidary jewelry. He is a member of Oregon Christian Writers, Mensa, ALLi, and the Tualatin Valley Gem Club.

More from JW

The ArcPoint trilogy finally reaches its conclusion with Mojave Rock. I ramp up the humor and romance a little, just to make it interesting. A few of the minor characters play a larger role. We get to see how Arcon travels around the world without floating on water or flying through the air. And we get a glimpse of what this world is like with the Prince of Peace ruling the planet.

I also move more toward science fiction with Mojave Rock. I wanted to show how mankind cleaned up our planet, after the tribulation era gave us wars, earthquakes, famines, and other forms of death and destruction. When lawlessness made all of us want to hide as ArcPoint did. As technology helped us, there were always people who used it to harm us.

It was fun to contemplate how accident-free high-speed travel could be accomplished. How could we use it to feed the world? In fact, what would world travel be like without war zones, national borders, corrupt government officials, currency exchange, pickpockets, and terrorists? Can you imagine retail stores without shoplifters? Email without spam? Facial recognition without invasion of privacy? No frauds, scammers, or identity thieves? All of that may sound like heaven, but it’s not. That’s another time and place.

So, how will ArcPoint react to connecting with the outside world again? They were already free of the things listed above. World peace didn’t concern them, since inner peace was a common commodity. Will they leave their oasis in the former desert? Will their community be overrun with strangers? Will Arcon and Elaina marry? It’s worth reading Mojave Rock to find out.

Author Interview

I’m so glad to welcome JW Gilbert to my blog. JW is a new-to-me author and I’ll be checking out Mojave Rock!

JW, thank you for being with us today. Often readers want to know why an author decided to write fiction. Can you tell us why you have?

I wanted to write a story that happens during the time Jesus is ruling our earth—when there’s no war or corrupt governments. The Bible tells us it’s coming in the future, so by necessity, it has to be fiction. But I also like fiction because it allows me to be creative. Plus, it’s what I like to read.

Writing fiction takes an imagination. How do you come up with your plots?

I either write about what I’ve personally experienced, or things I would like to see happen. There’s a little of both in the ArcPoint series.

Do you ever name your characters after people you know?

I do, just to honor them. However, the person in the book is never like the real-life person—it’s just a name.

Life can be so interesting. Do real-life stories get turned into fiction plots?

I use real-life stories a lot for certain scenes, but not as a plot for an entire book. For instance, as in Mojave Rift, as a teenager I swung through trees on a rope. The rock in Mojave Rock is real, found right where I said it was, in the Cady Mountains.

Have you ever read a book that made you cry?

I don’t think any book has made me cry as much as Mojave Rock. But that’s probably because it seems so real to me, and I’ve had to read it probably twenty times to edit it—and I cry every time.

Now, a very important question. What’s your favorite kind of ice cream?

When I was young it was Sidewalk Sundae ice cream bars, but now it’s chocolate peanut butter ice cream.

Thanks, JW. I have no idea what Sidewalk Sundae ice cream bars are, but I’m sure they’re delicious! And maybe a good treat when reading Mojave Rock. Check it out, readers, and see what you think.

Blog Stops

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, March 19 (Author Interview)

Vicky Sluiter, March 20 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 20

By The Book, March 21 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, March 22

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, March 23 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 24

Tell Tale Book Reviews, March 25 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, March 26

Artistic Nobody, March 27 (Author Interview)

Blogging With Carol, March 28

Guild Master, March 29 (Author Interview)

A Reader’s Brain, March 30 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, March 30

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, March 31 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, April 1

Giveaway

To celebrate his tour, J.W. is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card and a print copy of Mojave Rock!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link to enter.

About the Book

Book: Guardian

Author: Cathy McCrumb

Genre: Science Fiction

Release Date: February 20, 2024

The Recorder’s fate has been sealed, but the Consortium is not the only enemy.

Labeled an aberration by the Consortium, the Recorder is not yet free. Time is running out as an engineered bioweapon wreaks havoc on friend and foe alike.

Stopping both the biological agent and the people who created it is no easy task, especially since the Recorder and her friends are trapped on a research station infested with behemoth insects. Without Consortium technology, the probability of neutralizing the threat falls to nothing. In order to save her allies, the Recorder must activate a drone, but her success might destroy any hope for freedom, a future, and a name.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Cathy McCrumb graduated from Biola University with a degree in English Literature and a love for stories. She and her husband, whom she met while writing letters to soldiers, have five children and currently live within the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. While writing is one of her favorite things to do, she also enjoys reading, long hikes and long naps, gluten-free brownies and raspberries, and crocheting while watching science fiction movies with friends and family.

More from Cathy

Someone asked me recently why I wrote Guardian.  My answer was that the whole Children of the Consortium trilogy is my love song to people who feel left out.

In the first novel, the Recorder—a young woman with no name, no family, and no friends—doesn’t see her life as valuable. As she discovers friendship and love, however, she realizes that every person in the system is unique, and this by definition must include her, too.

How often do we doubt our own value and that of the people around us? In a world that prioritizes youth, beauty, health, and success, many people are on the outside, looking in. I suspect that deep down, a lot of us wrestle with who we are and how we fall short of this external measuring tape.

The truth, however, is very, very different from the lie of worthlessness. While we have names (and don’t usually encounter two-meter insects, for which I am extremely thankful), we frequently forget that as humans, even though we are fallen, we are made in God’s image. Furthermore, as Christians, we have been both called and adopted.

Zephaniah 3:17 says that the Lord is with us. He takes “great delight” in us and rejoices over us. What an amazing, beautiful, and comforting image. The One who formed the stars, who breathed life into every human on the planet rejoices over YOU.

My prayer is that you find hope and joy in the midst of darkness, whether or not you find friends in the pages of these novels. Look to the Lord and hold fast to the fact that you are unique and valuable. Because even when you feel like you’re on the outside looking in, you are never alone.

Author Interview

I always enjoy doing author interviews, and I hope you enjoy meeting new-to-you authors! Let’s spend a few minutes with Cathy McCrumb.

Cathy, thank you for being with us and chatting with my readers. Can you tell us how you come up with your plots?

I’m more of a discovery writer, and other “pantser” friends and I have joked about just
following our characters around and transcribing what they do. I tend to have an end goal or
a thematic point and hold that loosely. Once I understand/know my characters and their
world (which is a character of its own), I set them loose. Inevitably, their interactions are
better than anything I would have planned. I suppose you could say that once the characters
are solid in my mind, it’s a logical matter of what happens next and what makes that worse.
Frequently, it isn’t the first idea that is the best, but the third or fourth.

(Readers, a “pantser” is someone who writes by the seat of their pants, as opposed to a “plotter”. I happen to be a pantser as well.)

A common question that people have, is do you ever name your characters after people you know?

Only when petitioned to do so or when I ask specifically! One of the cats (Hunter) was
named after my sister’s, but several people asked me to put them in the books. (They all
wanted to be bad guys with hideous ends, no less!) That’s where I found names for Parker,
Michaelson, Ken, and Kirk. Not all of my friends got their wishes, though. Only one of them
turned out to be an antagonist, even if some of them have their hideous ends.

Books can be incredibly moving. Have you ever read a book that made you cry?

Yes. So many. Water’s Break by Sophia L. Hansen made me cry recently.

Serious question now. What’s your favorite kind of ice cream?

Mint chip! I don’t buy it often for fear that I will devour it all!

Before we say good bye, can you share what your funniest typo has been?

My current favorite was “WYMPATHETIC.” I think it should be a real word.

Cathy, I think that should be a real word. I love it! Thanks for being with us and readers, I hope you’ll check out Cathy’s book!

Blog Stops

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 7

Through the Fire Blogs, March 8 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, March 9

Splashes of Joy, March 10 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 11

Artistic Nobody, March 12 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, March 13 (Author Interview)

A Reader’s Brain, March 14 (Author Interview)

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, March 15 (Author Interview)

Wishful Endings, March 15

Simple Harvest Reads, March 16 (Author Interview)

Blossoms and Blessings, March 17 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, March 17

Fiction Book Lover, March 18 (Author Interview)

Blogging With Carol , March 19

Vicky Sluiter, March 20 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Cathy is giving away the grand prize of a copy of Guardian!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link to enter.