Teresa Tysinger, Author

The Little Blue Cottage Opens Soon!

Do you love sitting around with friend chatting about books? Does the idea of curling up with a good book and cup of something warm make you smile? I’d like to invite you to come join me at The Little Blue Cottage — OPENING IN ONE WEEK ON NOVEMBER 12!

The Little Blue Cottage (LBC) is the name of a brand new virtual gathering spot for us to discuss all things reading, creativity, faith, and friendship. Imagine pulling up a crunchy gravel driveway to a cute little cottage just off a country road, tucked under tall shade trees and hugged by blooming bushes or showered by dancing fall leaves. There’s a porch for rocking, a fireplace for cozy chats when the air is crisp, stacks of books everywhere you turn, and fresh coffee is always ready.

You can “visit” the LBC by way of a monthly email and an exclusive Facebook group. Here’s what you can expect when you pop by the cottage each month:

A FREE Short Story. If you’ve been around a long time, these “flash fiction” stories of approximately 500-1000 words will be similar to the Blue Ridge University series I used to offer in my newsletters. The sweet Southern stories with a hint of romance will be included in each mid-month email. Each installment will build on each other like old fashioned serial stories. You’ll get to know the characters and anticipate what happens next!
Book Talk. I’ll share news of new titles releasing, great sales/deals, and recent reviews or book cover reveals from around the Christian fiction community. From time to time, I’ll even welcome an author to stop by for a mini interview or chat.
Community & Friendship. Each month in the email, there will be something shared by a member of our LBC community! This might be sharing about a favorite book, posing a question or short devotional to the community for discussion on our private Facebook group page, or even sharing a favorite recipe, memory, or creative idea. If you’ve got ideas on how to encourage our community, let me know!
Exclusive Membership in LBC Facebook Group! Subscribers will receive a link in our first LBC email on November 12 to join a private Facebook group where we can continue getting to know each other. (Subscribing after our LBC launch? No worries! New subscribers will be sent a link, too!) We’ll imagine sitting on the porch in rocking chairs, casually sipping on iced tea (or coffee during the cooler fall season), and chatting the day away.

If you’re already subscribed to my email list, there’s no need to sign up again! You’re already in. If you’re not yet subscribed and would like to join us at The Little Blue Cottage for all things books, reading, writing, and friendship, click the button below!

Share this post with your friends so they don’t miss out on a minute of the fun, too!

SEE YOU SOON, FRIENDS!

5 Christmas Novellas to Get You in the Spirit

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It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas around the book community! Below are five Christmas novellas (or collections of novellas) that have either recently released or release soon — just in time to get you in the Christmas spirit.

THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS by Bell Renshaw

Will the perfect Christmas be enough to convince Beau that a life with Ansley could be equally perfect? Born and raised in Winter, Montana, Beau Bradley can’t imagine life anywhere else. During the holiday season his coffee shop, Mountain Grounds, is as busy as ever and now that his girlfriend is back in town, things finally seem to be lining up—until he gets a call that could change it all. Ansley Strauss is back in Winter after a nine-month, art intensive in Canada and she’s ready to celebrate the Christmas season in the tried and true Winter-style. There’s only one problem: her boyfriend lacks Christmas spirit. Her solution? Make this Christmas perfect to remind Beau just how special this time of year is. Set on a course for ultimate Christmas joy, Ansley and Beau find that life doesn’t always work out the way they hope it will. Beau faces the reality that plans can’t account for everything and sometimes risking it all is the only way. Ansley will have to come to the realization that no matter how perfect things are, it’s the imperfections in life that make it worth living. It’s another Christmas in Winter, Montana where the coffee is always hot and the mistletoe beckons lovers to share a kiss.

Available Now on Amazon

ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS by Andrea Boyd, Mikal Dawn, Toni Shiloh, Angela Ruth Strong, and Jaycee Weaver

Embrace the magic of the Christmas season with these contemporary twists on timeless tales.

Upon a Dream (Boyd) — A rare sleeping disorder keeps Talia from performing, but when Philip recognizes her gift, he’ll do whatever it takes to see her onstage.

Claim My Heart (Dawn) — Li Na and Colin Wen face off in a Mulan-esque courtroom battle where the real win might be losing their hearts.

A Snow White Christmas (Shiloh) — Sheltered heiress Amala White flees her conniving stepmother’s plans and finds refuge with a handsome orchard owner and his seven quirky uncles.

Christmas Ella (Strong) — Reality TV meets Cinderella story when a location director is swept off her feet by a rising star.

A Splash of Love (Weaver) — Las Vegas glitz meets Land of Enchantment culture in A Splash of Love, a modern twist on the Little Mermaid.

Available Now on Amazon

LIKE A WINTER SNOW by Lindsay Harrel

In this standalone holiday novella, return to the charming Cornish village readers fell in love with in The Secrets of Paper and Ink.

Women’s counselor Joy Beckman has always been a friend and helper to all. That’s why she’s given up everything to be with her parents as her mother suffers through Alzheimer’s. Joy may not have a thriving career or a love life at the moment, but she’s doing what she does best—taking care of others. And even though it’s difficult, she knows it’s where she is supposed to be.

But life throws a curveball when she has to leave her parents temporarily to travel to Cornwall, England, for the Christmas-time wedding of her best friend. While there, Joy helps Sophia tackle her last-minute to-do list, and in the process, finally meets a man who turns her head—and her heart. The only problem? He lives in snowy London, and her life is with her parents back in sunny Florida.

She tries to resist Oliver Lincoln’s charms, but it’s harder than it should be. With her heart torn in two, Joy is forced to choose between a life she knows she’s meant for and the one she didn’t see coming.

Available for Pre-Order (releases October 29) on Amazon

THE WEDDING DRESS CHRISTMAS by Rachael Hauck

December comes to quaint Hearts Bend, Tennessee, with a blanket of white and the glitter of Christmas lights.

For JoJo Castle there is no place like home. Her onetime love of adventure ended when her life in the big city came crashing down. Now that she’s home, she never wants to leave again.

Country music sensation Buck Mathews has charmed the world with his smile and his music. However, news of his mother’s illness brought him home to Hearts Bend for the holiday season.

Working with her cousin Haley in The Wedding Shop, JoJo has no aspirations of love. But when her high school crush returns to town, her buried feelings surface.

Busy with his career, Buck hasn’t had time for family and friends, much less love. Seeing JoJo in The Wedding Shop reminds him there are things more important than his career.

But JoJo and Buck have opposing life goals, and there’s no middle ground. Can love, especially the kind that touches hearts at Christmas, overcome her fears and his quest for greatness?

With the help of a very special wedding dress, there just might be a Christmas miracle.

Available Now on Amazon

ROYALLY YOURS by Ashley Clark, Liz Johnson, Betsy St. Amant, Melissa Tagg

Royalty meets small-town charm in this collection of four heartwarming romances.

Tinsel, Vermont is known for its no-paparazzi policy and Christmas decorations that are fit for a queen. This holiday season, join four royals on a stroll through town square as they each find their Christmas wishes for a happily-ever-after…tiaras optional.

Available for Pre-Order (releases November 5) on Amazon

Have you read any of these yet? Let me know what’s been your favorite so far, what you’re most excited to read, or what other Christmas books you’re looking most forward to this season.

You’re Invited!

You're invited to follow me on Instagram!

Long lost friends of this little corner of my world! How the heck are ya? I’m oh so slowly tip-toe’ing into a revival of my author/designer self…much like fall is oooooh sooooo slowly creeping into Texas.

For now, I’ve got one simple reason for writing. YOU’RE INVITED to join me on Instagram! I’ve just launched an author account dedicated to all things books, writing, happy endings (and the may journeys it takes to get there), encouragement, laughter, and much more. If you’re on Instagram and think this sounds like your jam, you can find me @teresatysinger_author.

Want to go a step farther? Share my new account with your friends and family! There’s always room at the table for more of us!

I can’t wait to catch up with everyone and start sharing what’s going on in my world, all the new books coming out soon I’m excited to read, what’s on the horizon for my own writing, etc. Tell me what’s up with you in the comments.

HUGS!

Weary But Willing

Weary But Willing by Teresa Tysinger

Have you ever been to the beach and found yourself stuck in a barrage of oncoming waves? Unable to catch your footing or your breath before another wall of water knocks you over? It’s a debilitating combination of fear and exhaustion.

I’m in a season that feels like a perpetual turnstile of wave after wave pushing me into the rough sand with just enough breath to survive another jaunt to the surface. A husband working out of town full-time for going on nine months), up to 2-hours of a commute every day, an illness of a parent that left me worried more than I realized, and now a move back across the country planned for the end of the summer. Packing our household up on my own, managing a super full summer of camps and activities for my daughter, fitting in time with family and friends before we leave, finding a new job. And writing this novella that’s been in the works for months now and is due to my editor in ONE MONTH.

I can’t catch my breath.

Today while sharing with some friends about the struggle to write a story that just isn’t coming to me (in the little amount of time I have), I wrote something that stopped me in my tracks. I’m weary, but I’m willing.

Woah. God doesn’t expect me to have it all together. In fact, just the opposite.

Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

He wants me to come to Him with my exhaustion, loneliness, uncertainty of the future, and over-committed schedule and let him carry it. I also bring him my willingness. I’m willing to do the hard work. I’m willing to welcome Him as my guide and partner. I’m willing for Him to use my writing to tell even one person about His truth and love.

During this season that our family has been living apart, we’ve adopted the motto “We can do hard things!” It’s a quick reminder that we are bendable but not breakable. If you need proof that God gets it — understands what we often go through on this side of heaven — just consider some of the most recognizable Bible verses:

“I can do all things through Christ who strengths me.” – Philippians 4:13

“When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, I you will not drown.” – Isaiah 43:2

“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not grow weary; they shall walk and not faint.” – Isaiah 40:31

“Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” – Joshua 1:9

My draft is due to my editor on June 7. So, I’m working on a writing schedule for the next month. It will mean pushing myself to some limits. Late nights. Saying no to other things. Asking my daughter for extra patience and independence. But we can do hard things.

You can do hard things, too. God is there to take the burden when the waves crash in and steal your breath. He will not let us break.

Amen!

Watch Me Write & a SALE

Watch Me Write Blog Post

You know those friends who you can go months or maybe years without speaking to, then pick right back up where you left things in one single phone call, text, or visit? I’m hoping we’re those kinds of friends!

It’s been another hot minute (are kids still saying that?) since I posted anything here. It seems finding my stride has proved illusive during a season of life that can only be described as a bit chaotic. My husband is still on on the road full-time with one of the national tours of Hamilton, my commute to work here in Nashville is consistently 50 minutes each way, and our daughter is at the age where her after-school calendar makes mine look pretty sad.

Given all of this, maybe you won’t be too surprised to hear that I’ve written exactly ONE CHAPTER of my novella that’s due to my editor in early June. To recap, this novella is part of a collection of six contemporary re-tellings of fairy tales with a holiday twist. The collection will release in the fall and I’m so excited.

But, it won’t write itself.

So, in an effort to seek some accountability, I have started #WatchTeresaWrite on my social feeds. Follow along on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter as I log my word count, aiming for a total of 28,000 words. (I’ll check in periodically here, too.)

Want to know more about the fairy tale I’m retelling? Check back soon for a little more, but our heroine will be busy looking for something (or someone) juuuuust right. Any guesses? Stay tuned…

SALE ANNOUNCEMENT

Technically, this isn’t a sale, but hopefully that got your attention. The Kindle eBook of my debut novel, Someplace Familiar is now permanently reduced to just $0.99! Get your copy and add it to your To Be Read pile today!