Heather Heyford's Blog
August 14, 2018
A Time of Transition . . .
August is only half over, but enough has happened to fill a whole month. Here's just a partial list: there was a family wedding with house guests, we hosted a party and attended one. I had a book event, a close relative suffered a cardiac event and was hospitalized. I signed, addressed and mailed out 100 winning copies of First Comes Love for my latest Goodreads giveaway. And yesterday Sophie, my sweet feline companion of 18 years, passed away. When we rescued the skinny gray kitten from a cage at the shelter, I was still teaching and my daughter, Cupcake was still a little girl. As Cupcake grew up and out of the house and I left teaching to try my hand at writing, Sophie rescued me. Her insistent meows woke me up in the morning, greeted me when I walked in the door, and demanded food and petting throughout the day, right up until bedtime when she invariably slept lying on top of me. She was a regular pain in the butt, and her passing marks the end of an era.
An idea for a new book is already coming together in my head, and I know the seasons will bring unplanned surprises. But for now, I find myself pausing to reflect. To end on a happy note, here's a photo of Hubs and I at the wedding I mentioned earlier. I hope your summer has been filled with meaningful work, balanced by good times with loved ones.
July 24, 2018
Room for Writing
For the longest time I'd been writing scruched up on chairs or flung across the couch. The result was neck and shoulder pain severe enough to send me to PT. My therapist explained that if I wanted to keep writing, I needed a more body-friendly set up, so I retrofitted a keyboard shelf beneath my desk. One thing led to another. Now, I have a writing space that is comfortable and suits my personality. More photos to come!
July 13, 2018
March 22, 2018
I've lived in many towns across America . . .
. . . yet I still have these romantic notions of what places with names like Green Oaks Drive, Blackwelder Farm Road, and Spring Valley Lane look like. That's why I set my books in small towns and rural areas—to me they embody what is authentic about our country and its hard-working, high-spirited men and women.
That's also why I don't mind addressing all these winning copies of The Sweet Spot from my latest Goodreads giveaway. It's a refreshing change from staring out the window and thinking up plotlines that—here’s the rub—make sense.
At my local post office the books will be sorted and distributed all over the country to towns such as Cape Carteret, San Angelo (I lived there when I was three!), Half Moon Bay, Apple Valley, and Waukesha.
Didn't enter? You can get your copy here. Happy reading!
March 1, 2018
Lorelei's Lit Lair
Lorelei and I met last summer in Orlando wandering around the Swan & Dolphin hotel and we immediately hit it off. To celebrate the launch of The Sweet Spot, Lorelei invited me to stop by her blog. Stop over to enter to win a copy of my book and see what else Lorelei is up to!
Learn some fun facts about Heather in this short Q&A. Leave a question on the blog for a chance to win The Sweet Spot!
1. What genre(s) do you write?
I write contemporary romances set in the wine country. I have lived in the French wine country and I'm a frequent visitor to N. California and Oregon's Willamette Valley, the up-and-coming wine area of the US.
2. Coffee or tea lover?
Coffee but only until noon; after that it keeps me up at night. While living in England between the ages of 7-10, we had tea and a sweet at 4.
3. Name one thing on your bucket list.
To watch a baby being born.
4. Do you have pets?
I have two cats, Sophie and Charley, and I'm babysitting my daughter's cat, Bear, that I flew here from Switzerland. While rolling down the runway for takeoff the pilot realized the plane was "broken" and we had to sit on the runway for 4 hours while they fixed it. All that even before the 9.5 hour flight!
5. When I wake up every morning I... stumble to the kitchen and make coffee
7. Do you have ny hobbies or particular skills?
I have a knack for sewing. My husband almost fainted the time I cut into a length of creamy cashmere brought back from Scotland by the daughter of an important client. An hour later, she left my house happily wearing her new sweater.
8. What do you hope readers will experience or gain when reading your stories?
Growing up in a military family, I moved a lot. The good part of that is I'm very adaptable. The not-so-good part is a feeling of rootlessness. After writing a few books, I realized the common theme running through them is finding home for the first time, or coming home after a long time away.
9. What inspired you to write The Sweet Spot?
Back when I was teaching high school art, a story haunted me—for years. Finally it got to the point where I said to myself, "That's it! I'm just going to write it down, and then I can get it out of my head. Heck, I can write a book. It'll be easy!" (Word to the wise—Do Not Try This at Home.) While that manuscript didn't sell, I discovered something life-changing: I love to write. To my great joy, my next book did sell, and the one after that, and so on. Seven books later, I still couldn't forget about that first story. I dug it out from under my bed, polished it up using my new and improved skills, and now, lo and behold, The Sweet Spot is at B&N and Target and Walmart and how could this possibly be happening to an art teacher??
February 28, 2018
New book, a new series, a new cast of characters to fall in love with! The Sweet Spot is here.
A summer job at a vineyard—the perfect place for big city music teacher Jamie to forget about the past school year. But can a dream vacation turn into her real life?
All Hank ever wanted was to earn his pilot's wings. But when his parents passed tragically, responsibility for the family vineyards fell on his shoulders. Now he's torn between chasing his dream and keeping their legacy alive.
As the grapes are harvested, the leaves start to turn and Jamie returns to school, Hank finds that saying goodbye—to both his heritage and Jamie—is a lot harder than he could ever have imagined…
Get your copy here
February 17, 2018
Copy of Win a Print Copy
I'm giving away 100 signed, PRINT copies of The Sweet Spot! Enter here. Contest ends March 18, 2018. Good luck!
January 31, 2018
Win a Print Copy
December 12, 2017
WIN A PRINT COPY
I'm giving away a signed, personalized copy of Intoxicating! Enter at Goodreads Giveaways
Contest ends at midnight Dec. 20, 2017. Good luck!
October 15, 2017
Harvest Time in Wine Country: The Crush
In wine country, they call it “the crush” . . . that glorious time of autumn when the grapes are bursting with juice and just the right amount of sweetness, ready to be harvested.
The vineyards crawl with pickers in their bright-colored hoodies to ward off the pre-dawn chill. Soon big plastic bins full of fruit will make their way to the press and the fermenting tanks or barrels.
To celebrate the crush, I’m giving away this lovely gift box chock-full of autographed, contemporary romance novels set in wine country, plus chocolate and wine accessories. This box will show up on the doorstep of a lucky person who signs up for my newsletter by clicking here. Contest starts now. Good luck! Winner announced Oct. 1 on my Facebook page. Continental US only.
Heather Heyford writes contemporary romance novels set in the wine country. THE CRUSH, Book 1 of An Oregon Wine Country Romance and set in the heart of Oregon’s wine country, the Willamette Valley, is now available here.
image oregonwinepress.com
