Let God Lead Your Dance

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When I first sat down to write Love in Three-Quarter Time, I figured that since the book was about the waltz, the perfect spiritual theme would be “let God lead your dance.” My heroine, Constance Cavendish, had spent her youth as a Scarlet O’Hara type character, selfish and headstrong, yet with an admirable strength and passion. After tragedy struck her family when she was sixteen, she blamed herself and determined to tame her passionate nature and somehow earn God’s forgiveness.

Of course, I hope my reader will understand that none of us can earn our way to forgiveness, but if not, they can take that journey along with Constance. Constance needs to learn that God created her passionate, fiery nature. Her goal should not be to repress it, but rather to submit it to God. To let Him lead her life much like a dance, following with His gentle tugs and sways. I chose as a theme verse for this book, “Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day,” from Psalm 25:5.

And as I started this book, I assumed I would keep the spiritual theme focused and simple, but books, and life, never really turn out that way. First, to get to this theme, Constance had to learn about one of my all-time favorite spiritual themes, the importance of an intimate relationship with Christ. One cannot stay in tune with God and follow His rhythms for one’s life without that intimate connection. Constance had to learn to see God from a new perspective. She needed to immerse herself in God’s word and in prayer, and she needed to learn to hear His voice.

As she discovered intimacy with Christ and learned to let God lead her dance, she also began to discover freedom in Christ. Yet another theme I love. In fact, my personal life and writing theme verse is, “Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly.” See how nicely letting God teach you His rhythms flows into freedom in that verse. And since a subplot of the book concerns the abolitionist movement, guess what? Freedom became a theme in the book as well. Both Constance and her hero needed God’s freedom in their lives. Particularly freedom from the mistakes of their past.

And how does one get free from the mistakes of one’s past? More often than not, by facing the truth. By learning God’s perspective on the truth to replace the lies of Satan for starters, but also by dealing with the truth, revealing our secrets, and making amends. Both my hero and my heroine were held in bondage by secrets from their pasts. So, before I knew it, truth became a theme in the book as well. The truth shall set you free and all that.

By this time, my "simple little historical romance" had almost as many themes as my epic historical saga! And I swear, I didn’t even do it on purpose.  But no issue exists in a vacuum. Our spiritual journeys contain many facets. And I think this journey develops in an organic way. The fact is, my "simple little historical romance" ended up with more of a spiritual focus than I ever expected. It became a love story with Jesus as much as anything else, and I couldn’t be more pleased.

Here is a lovely example of a contemporary waltz for your viewing pleasure. Imagine yourself dancing in the arms of Jesus.

Which of these themes interests you the most? Have you learned to let God lead your dance? If so, what advice do you have on the subject? I'd love to hear your thoughts on freedom and truth as well.

Tomorrow's the Big Day!

Love in Three-Quarter Time releases tomorrow! If you pre-order today, it should be waiting for you. The Zondervan page has links to all the retailers currently carrying it: http://zondervan.com/9780310334156. And the price is awesome, only $3.99. See my blog tour schedule in last week's post. In preparation for tomorrow, I've added a book club link here on my website. I've also created a list of discussion questions.

1.       In the prologue of the book we see a very different Constance than the girl found in chapter one. Compare and contrast the two versions of Constance. Which version do you like better and why?

2.       Have you ever repressed part of your true nature? If so why? What was the result?

3.       Have you ever felt like God was looking over your shoulder waiting to punish you? If you could send Constance a message at this point of the book, what would you want to say to her?

4.       How do you feel when you think back on the days of slavery in our country? How do you think you would have responded if you lived in those days?

5.       Do you like to dance? Why or why not? What is your favorite style of dance?  Would you like to learn it?

6.       What do you think of Robbie’s hesitation to ask God for help? What issues hinder your prayer life?

7.       Robbie’s hesitation to ask God for help was probably more typical in his generation than today due to their Deist philosophy. What beliefs of today’s society might cloud our theological beliefs?

8.       What was your first reaction to Lorimer? Did your opinions change as you got to know him better?

9.       Compare and contrast the character of Patience with the character of Constance.

10.   Of the three men in the story, Robbie, Lorimer, and Franklin, who appeals to you the most personally? Why?

11.   Who do you see as the best match for Constance?  Why?

12.   Do you study the Bible as Constance attempted to in the book? What methods work best for you? What struggles do you face?

13.   Discuss the symbols of heat and fire in the book. What change occurred in Constance at the bonfire? How did Robbie feel as he stared into the fire at Monticello? Is “heat” needed in a relationship?

14.   Consider the subject of passion. How do you feel about passion? What were your thoughts before reading this book? Did they change at all while reading?

15.   How do you best hear from God? Did you learn anything about hearing God’s voice through any of the characters in the book?

16.   What strides did the characters in the book take towards racial reconciliation? Do you feel like this is still an issue today? If so, how should you respond to it?

17.   For some of the main characters, their stories are left open ended. What issues are they left with at the end of the book? If you could continue their stories, what would you wish for them?

18.   The ending of the book involves facing a hard truth from the past. Do you think the characters involved made the right decision in sharing this truth? Do you think all secrets should be revealed? Should God’s timing and guidance play a part in the revelation?

19.   The theme of the book is “let God lead your dance.” How do the various characters in the book respond to this theme? How do you feel about this theme?

20.   Discuss what freedom means to you. Where does true freedom come from? What does it look like? At what point does one person’s freedom infringe upon others?

News! News! News!

First important announcement is that Love in Three-Quarter Time is now available for pre-order on amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc... It makes me happy to see it :) I especially enjoy perusing the "Sold by: HarperCollins Publishing" line and the awesome $3.99 price! And just in case you forgot how pretty the cover is...

Also, next week is the official release on October 23rd.

And! I'll be kicking off a very busy blog tour. I'm trying to keep each article fresh and original so that you can learn a little something new about the book, it's background, and me--the author--at each stop. Here's what's coming in October:

October 22nd: First online review!!! http://colonialquills.blogspot.com/
October 22nd: I'll be sharing my thoughts on romance at http://thewritersalleys.blogspot.com/
October 22nd: Interview by Roseanna White at http://www.inkwellinspirations.com/
October 23rd: CJ Chase will be talking about the evolution of dance at http://www.inkwellinspirations.com/
October 24th: Article about my writing and Zondervan's new line by DeAnna Dodson at http://www.inkwellinspirations.com/
October 24th: I'll be sharing about history of the waltz at http://colonialquills.blogspot.com/
October 25th: I'll be posting about the spiritual themes at http://www.inkwellinspirations.com/
October 26th: Review by Debra Marvin at http://www.inkwellinspirations.com/
October 29th: My article on the history in my novel http://susiefinkbeiner.com/

I'll let you know about my November/December schedule as they approach.

Hope to see you on tour!

Blessings, Dina

And Now a Word from Our Local Sponsor...

Just kidding. Sort of. Today I'd like to talk about my group blog, Inkwell Inspirations. The ladies of Inkwell, or the Inkies as we like to call ourselves, have been a part of my life for over three years now. We all banded together as pre-pubbed authors, most of whom had won contests or achieved some level of professional success, and started a blog in the fall of 2009. At the time only one of us was published. Now, the majority of us are published. More importantly, these ladies have been there for me through all the ups and downs of life, marriage problems, health crises, job issues, and of course writing struggles.My friends at Inkwell have been a huge part of my writing journey, and I'm not sure I would have made it here without them.

Charlie's Inkies (Lisa Richardson, me, and Gina Welborn) at ACFW 2011

This fall we have a lot to celebrate. Here's a quick list.

Congratulations to:

Gina Welborn: A Cascades Christmas,  Barbour Books, Sept 1

Lisa Karon Richardson *Her first release: Colonial Courtships, Barbour Books, Oct 1

Dina Sleiman: Love in Three-Quarter Time, Zondervan books, Oct 23

Jennifer AlLee: A Wild Goose Chase Christmas, Abingdon Press, Nov 1

Susan Diane Johnson *Her first release: No Substitute, White Rose Publishers, Nov 30

I invite you to join us at the Inkwell as we celebrate our successes and take a look at these awesome books. Click here.

What's New in CBA Historical Romance???

I adore a good historical romance. What could be more fun than exploring a new time and place while falling in love in the process? However, I don’t particularly adore the oh-so-popular prairie romance. So I’ve been very excited to find lots of new CBA historical romances set in time periods I enjoy.

This summer I particularly focused on books set in America from the late 1800s through the early 1900s. Note that each of these books are located in civilized areas with well-educated, cultured heroines. Ahh, how’s that for a nice change? I’ll let you in on the basic plot lines as well as some of the strengths and weaknesses of each as we go along.

Heiress by Susan May Warren – This was my personal favorite of the bunch. It’s a story of two sisters, both wealthy heiresses in the early 1900s, who follow very different paths in life. One marries for money, while the other follows her dreams to the West where she starts her own newspaper. Perhaps better described as a historical novel with romantic elements, the book is full of surprises, twists and turns, and emotional depth, as it follows them through several decades. What I loved about it was that it took a very real look at the difficulties women faced at that time in history rather than play on the fallacy of “the good old days.” It was realistic and gritty with a lovely literary touch. I’ve heard some readers complain about an adulterous situation in the book, however I think this is an important issue, and the author handles it well. I wish she had made a clearer connection between the adultery and the abuse the heroine suffered, but nonetheless, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is willing to look at the hard side of high society life.

Making Waves by Lorna Seilstad – I would call this one a perfect vacation read. It’s certainly the funniest of the bunch. Lighthearted and full of life. The story takes place on a resort in 1895. The sassy, spunky heroine is determined to learn to sail, although she can’t swim. She pulls plenty of Lucille-Ball-worthy stunts, and her inner dialogue is hysterical. I suppose my only issue was that, as with many romances, much of the early tension has to do with the heroine's blind stubbornness. However, as the story progresses, real issues arise as the man her father wants her to marry shows his true colors. I can’t say this story really stuck with me, but I certainly had fun while reading it.

Glamorous Illusions by Lisa Bergren – My favorite part of this book is that it follows the heroine on the grand tour through Europe in 1913. I loved that, including the cruise aboard a Titanic style ship and the gorgeous Edwardian fashions. It’s fun seeing it all through the eyes of a simple farm girl, who has only recently discovered that her real father is the local copper baron and questions the excess around her. This book had plenty of emotional depth as well, because she has also learned that she is an illegitimate child, and she struggles to find her place in the world and in her new family. Only her thoughtful tour guide (a.k.a. handsome hero) seems to understand her and be on her side. This book was well-written and enjoyable, but I had two small complaints with it. One, not being a prairie lover, I felt that the beginning on the farm dragged along for too many pages, although I stuck with it for the promise of the grand tour. Two, I was surprised that while one storyline concluded, there was not much resolution at the end. You have to continue reading the series to see how the romance turns out. However, I liked it enough to keep reading if time allows.

The Rose of Winslow Street by Elizabeth Camden – Last but not least, this book set in Massachusetts in 1879 was by far the most unexpected of the bunch. A Romanian family of refugees claims a house based on an old will while the owners are gone for the summer. That’s a lot of originality right there. Add in that the Romanian hero grows flowers for perfume and that the heroine who is the daughter of a professor has a severe reading disability, and I was totally hooked. As I mentioned, I hate reading the same old same old, and this was entirely fresh. Of course I’m sure you figured out that it’s her house he’s taken, and yet this good-hearted, artistic heroine finds herself drawn to him and his entire family. The book deals with plenty of very real and stirring issues like prejudice, a minor character whose life was devastated by soldiers in Romania, and a heroine who is verbally abused by the father she loves. The climax of this story was unusual, in that the true emotional climax most strongly affected a minor character and took place in her point of view. Yet it was so beautiful and spiritually triumphant, I can’t bring myself to think it should have happened any other way (although I would have liked to have seen more of her POV earlier). If you want a book truly off the beaten path that still falls in the romance genre and has a happily-ever-after, this just might be the one for you.

What historical romances have you read lately? What did you like? What didn't you like?