@dochappycamper Joins the #FreedomHop Celebrating Reading Across the Genres

Live. Love. Read.

 THE FREEDOM HOP hosted by ROMANCE BECKONS

As a book lover, don’t take for granted your freedom to read. In this era of technology, books are at our fingertips and reading is something we make time for. eBook, audiobooks and good old-fashioned paperbacks give readers of all types the opportunity to enjoy reading.

Which type of books do you enjoy? Is it the fingernail-biting suspense? The thrill of an erotic romance? Or the fantasy of paranormal romance? Do you like your books to take you out of this world? Or is all about the possibilities in a contemporary romance?

 

Welcome to Behind Closed Doors and the next stop on the Freedom Hop. I’m author Tammy Dennings Maggy and I’m thrilled to take part in this event with thirty-nine others to celebrate our freedom to “live, love, and READ!” Books have always been my best friend. In fact, I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have my face buried in a book. There are pictures of me, barely able to sit up on my own holding a book in my chubby little baby fingers. All of those stories opened up so many avenues for me. My love of animals came from reading. My adoration of Science and English came from reading. The shy, introvert became the bold and brassy heroine through the books I read growing up. All of them made me who I am today and help me to tell the tales of my own characters. 

When I went through some of life’s toughest challenges, I knew I could always rely on my books to get me through. Those stories encouraged me to make up worlds of my own and share them with other readers. Hopefully, I can give back to them what all those authors have given me over the years. One specific challenge I had to get through, was the loss of my step dad in 2005 to Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. This time of year is still a little hard for me to get through. You see, Dad’s birthday was July 4th. Every single year we would use his birthday as an excuse to have a big gathering at our house with BBQ, swimming, volleyball and of course tons of fireworks. Dad loved this time of year not only for his birthday, but because as a Marine he participated in many celebrations honoring the freedoms we hold dear in the United States. 

Five years after his death, I made the journey back home after my first marriage fell apart and love from the past shattered my heart beyond repair. I was at my lowest point then and about to find my path to my happily ever after—but I didn’t know it at the time. The following is a poem I wrote on the plane ride from California to Michigan. This is one of several poems I published in Follow Me: Poetry from the Heart and Soul.

 

 

Home Again

©Tammy Dennings Maggy 2010

As soon as the wheels touched down,
The memories came flooding back.
Last time here was to say goodbye to the head of our family,
Our Rock, Provider, Protector.

Could feel him with me today,
As I left yet another plane.
Could feel his hand in mine;
Could hear him whisper
“it’s gonna be okay. You’ll get through this too.”
I am here. Lean on me.
Lean on the family.
That is why you are going home.

Five long years have passed
Since he was laid to rest.
But his guidance remains
Pulling me home again when life became unbearable.

So many emotions run through me as I drive North toward Home:
Shame to have failed yet again in love,
Failed at the marriage he had blessed.
Ashamed to have let another steal my heart and soul
so completely and leave me devastated.

But this time the Fixer of Broken Hearts and Souls
Was not there to pick up the pieces
and give me a reason for going home

This year was supposed to be different
Thought I found another to help me mend.
For three long years I barely existed,
Losing myself with each passing hour and day.

An old friend returned the smile to my face
And the laugh to my soul.
My Heart was nearly mended enough to trust again.
But the love that was promised was not true.
It was not meant to be.
So the heart that could not mend, shattered all the more.

Now I return home to my family and friends.
They will help bring the joy back into my life,
The smile to my face, and the laugh to my heart and soul.
For this is why I return again.
This is why I am going home.

I’ve used my poetry as outlines for a few more series I have underway and have included some poems in books I have out now. My vampire inspired poetry Courtship of the Vampyre details the stories I’m telling in my Kayne Legacy Series. The first of which should be out by the end of this year. In The Surrender of Julia (Now and Forever 3) I used my poetry for wedding vows. Julia’s story is so far my most controversial book and one my dad would have been tickled pink over. He always challenged me to follow my dreams and my heart no matter where the path would lead. I knew Julia’s story had to be told even though others told me I shouldn’t switch to a F/F coupling when the first two books in the series were M/F.

Well, Dad. I did it. I followed my heart and Julia’s story is now out there for everyone to enjoy.

In honor of the hop and my Dad’s memory, I’m giving away FOUR eBook copies of The Surrender of Julia. If you want a copy, all you have to do is leave a comment below with your contact information. I’ll announce the winners on Tuesday July 8th.

BLURB

L.A. artist phenom Julia Santos appeared to have it all. After a nearly two year long dry spell, her creativity was at its peak and she had her muse and model Jacob Hartley to thank for it. He brought the fire and raw sexuality back to her sculptures and into her bedroom, and a sense of security that only one other person in her life had ever given her. At last she had found the perfect balance between her professional and private lives, until the day a single call from someone in her past threatened to tear her world apart.

Fearful of losing all she’d worked so hard to accomplish, Julia delved deeper into the hedonistic lifestyle she’d come to rely on to give her an escape from the horrors of her past. Instead of bringing her comfort, her sexual urges lead her down the path of destruction; not only for herself, but those around her. With Jacob fighting for his life after a near fatal motorcycle accident and Julia on the brink of death herself, Fate and her Guardian Angel Daniel intervene and transport her to a safe haven called the Island.

There she’s given a choice: stay on the Island and wait for her next rebirth, or go back and fight to be with the one who has been there for her through every lifetime. Will she take the easy way out and leave all the pain behind, or will she choose the long and hard road reliving the horrors of her childhood in order to have her happily ever after with the Mistress of her dreams?

 

Make sure you check out the other blogs in the hop. You’ll have chances to win some fabulous prizes and maybe even find some new authors to add to your “must read” lists.

Have fun!
~Tammy

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