What books are on your "KEEPER SHELF?" Remembering beloved books & authors!

Most of us aspire to leave some kind of legacy behind. Authors, I think, hope their stories in some part, are the legacy they leave behind, characters that will linger on readers minds long after they are gone.

Having a holiday (Memorial Day) this past weekend, reminds me of how people impact our lives in various ways.

This past week the writing world said goodbye to Christina Skye. After the initial shock that even authors are indeed mortal...her passing came as a reminder.

 I have on my keeper shelf--you know, those books you read and re-read when you simply can find nothing else that satisfies--Christmas Knight. I believe it may have been one of her first books, if not her first and I immediately fell in love. Its pages are worn and a bit dingy form re-reading, but isn't that what we all as authors hope for our stories?  

On this journey of writing, I've met many people in this industry-from agents to editors, publishers to authors (on all levels )-- the listers, award-winners, international best-sellers....and some who have none of those attributes associated to their names, but whose storytelling is as impressive, just undiscovered, yet.

So, now it's YOUR TURN...

Leave a comment or a picture of your "keeper books" 
NAME YOUR FAV 

"keeper" book 
to enter to win a $50 Gift card from Amazon!
(*that ought to help the TBR summer reading pile!)

Amanda McIntyre

Coming 2018

 On my keeper shelf I have a few gazillion books--Many are research books (another love of mine) some because of the content/storytelling, others simply because I admire the content of character of the author who has impacted my journey in some way. See if you might recognize any of them...

Roan by Jennifer Blake, Colony by Anne River Siddons, Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, Christmas Knight by Christina Skye, Pink Moon by Stef Ann Holm, Your Wish is My Command, by Donna Kauffman, Chesapeake Bay Saga Trilogy by Nora Roberts, and many , many more-past & those in my TBR pile that have made an impact on me on this writer's journey. (* I highly recommend any of these books to your summer reading pile!)

I asked the authors here at GLIAS what are some of the books on their keeper shelves?

~*~*~*

 Angi Morgan


My 1970 Harlequin Presents given to me by my grandmother. The very first western historicals I ever read. Books from authors who are close friends. The Suzanne Brockmann Navy SEALs TROUBLESHOOTERS series. And SEASWEPT by Nora Roberts which changed how I looked at writing characters. Honestly, this barely scratches the surface. I have more than a dozen boxes of books I’ve kept for my eventual library. Oh yes, there will be a library with floor to ceiling shelves!!


Avril Tremayne
First and foremost, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. It's the book that hooked me on passionate romance and I've read it about 50 times. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte joined the list this year after an engrossing re-read! All 12 of the Poldark novels are there, as are all the Georgian and Regency romances by Georgette Heyer. Nobody's Angel, by Karen Robards; Lawless, by Patricia Potter; Devil in Winter, by Lisa Kleypas; This Time Forever, by Kathleen Eagle; See Jane Score, by Rachel Gibson; Dream Man by Linda Howard; and Clandara by Evelyn Anthony.  Now, I think that's enough to be going on with!



Tina Susedik

I have several authors on my keeper shelf: Kathleen Woodiwiss, Lavyrle 

Spencer, Jude Deveraux, Ann Simas, Janet Evanovich, just to name a few. 

Who inspired me? There are too many authors to name and I'm still 

finding more that when I read them, I wonder, 'how did they do that?' I 

think the first author, though, was Kathleen Woodiwiss. The Flame and 

the Flower was the first romance I'd ever read. I was hooked.

Paty Jager


Nicole McCaffery was the author who saw my potential and helped me hone my writing craft. She believed in me before I even believed in myself. 








Jacqui Nelson

Marguerite Henry's Peter Lundy & the Medicine Hat Stallion is on my keeper shelf. It's a copy I've had since I was young. It inspired me to love adventure stories with horses. It also inspired my story Following Faith which is part of the Journey of the Heart anthology released last year. Following Faith features Eagle Feather (a character from Between Heaven & Hell, book 1 in my Lonesome Hearts series) and a Medicine Hat horse that helps Eagle win the love of a schoolmistress who's been expelled from her teaching position in a remote logging camp. 

E.E.Burke

Two authors who have had big influences on my writing style: Jill Marie Landis and LaVyrle Spencer. I have most (if not all) of their American historical romances on my keeper shelf. 

Linda Broday's Men of Legend novels are my current favorites in the Western historical genre. Her grit and determination (which show through in every story, by the way) inspire me to reach for the stars. Her books line my keeper shelf.

There are so many more and I wish I had time and space to list them all. 

A.C. Wilson

Of course, I have favorite authors some of which are Amanda McIntyre, Jacqui Nelson and E.E. Burke (only to name a few). I was reading long before I was a writer, but I am inspired most by the reasons authors choose to enter this industry. I admire their tenacity, their perseverance and their willingness to share the spotlight with fellow authors. It makes me proud to be an author and part of WDR!



Ginger Ring

The author that inspired me is LaVyrle Spencer!      

Wild Deadwood Authors Reveal Their Secrets

USA Today and Amazon bestselling authors bring Deadwood’s past and present to life in this limited edition anthology benefiting rodeo athletes.

What inspired some of the wonderful stories in Wild Deadwood Tales? What little secrets do our writers have? Read on for fun answers from six of WDT's authors!

E.E. Burke: Unexpected Calamity
Calamity Jane is drawn back to Deadwood by a force more powerful than death and becomes an unexpected savior in the midst of an epidemic.

What was the inspiration for your story?

Last year, I visited the Mount Moriah Cemetery in Deadwood and saw Calamity Jane's grave right next to where Wild Bill Hickok is buried. Her last request: to be laid to rest beside him. Based on the research I did, it seems she only knew him for a week or two, and they weren't lovers. I wondered why she would come all the way back to Deadwood to die and be buried beside Wild Bill, who'd been murdered 27 years before she passed.

What genre(s) do you usually write?

Western historical romance and Western contemporary romance

You've been granted a superpower for one week. What power would you choose and why?

I'd love to be able to fly. So I could wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted. Plus, having a bird's eye view of the world would be amazing.

If you could excel at any rodeo sport which one would it be?

Roping...hot cowboys, preferably.

What's your favorite western, cowboy, or horse movie?

I fell in love with the AMC television series Hell On Wheels. The historical setting, the great acting, and Anson Mount were the three reasons I could not miss one single episode of this show. I was (and still am) addicted.

What are the top three things on your bucket list?

The top three? Hmm. That's a tough one. Spend a week on a ranch in Montana with "real" cowboys. Visit every National Park in the United States. Live in Provence (France) for a year.

A.C. Wilson: Tricks
Pushed to choose a direction for her life, Tandi discovers that some crossroads are necessary. Surprisingly, each marker leads her to an arena of spectators with her talented horse and a handsome guy who gives her hope to do the impossible.

What was the inspiration for your story?

I have always admired trick riders and am an advocate for young people to find their own pride inside themselves.

What genre(s) do you usually write?

Contemporary Western Romance

What's the one thing you won't leave home without?

My phone! I'm totally lost without it.

What's your favorite western, cowboy, or horse movie?

McClintock with John Wayne! I could watch it over and over again.

Amanda McIntyre: Once Upon a Deadwood Dream
Past and present meld together in Deadwood when a woman who discovers true love must fight to escape a deadly twist of fate.

What was the inspiration for your story?

I was inspired when I discovered that Wild Bill had been married once to the woman who was the love of his life. They'd been married only a month when he went to Deadwood to claim his fortune in gold and secure their future together. Oddly, he wrote Agnes Lake a letter expressing his love to her should he never return to her side. Days later he was shot at No 10 saloon by the cowardly Jack McCall.

What genre(s) do you usually write?

Contemporary western/historical romance

If you could excel at any rodeo sport which one would it be?

Barrel racing

What do you enjoy doing when you're not writing?

Time with family (especially my grandson) and friends, exploring new places, movies, music, sports, museums, and being grateful for my many blessings.

Tell us three surprising things about yourself.

I am not a GOT fan. I write my first draft on college-rule paper with a Black Bic pen. I am a taphophile-I love cemeteries--the older, the better!

What's your favorite western, cowboy, or horse movie?

Secretariat is my favorite horse movie,the heart of that horse is inspiring.

Tina Susedik: The School Marm
Having left her parents’ struggling farm, Suzanna Lindstrom dreams of a better life in Deadwood with a man who’s struck it rich in the goldfields. Fresh off the stagecoach, she meets a “disreputable” man. Or is he?

What was the inspiration for your story?

The history of Deadwood and how women help settle it.

What genre(s) do you usually write?

Historical romance and romantic mysteries

You've been granted a superpower for one week. What power would you choose and why?

The ability to add time to my day so I can get more writing done.

What's your favorite thing to snack on while writing?

A mixture of chocolate chips, cashews, raisens, and craisens.

What are the top three things on your bucket list?

Visit all the national parks in the United States, Visit as many historical sites in the US as I can, and go to the last four states my husband and I haven't visited yet.

Sylvia McDaniel: Love Across Time
Sadie Mae Miller hangs up her barrel-racing crown for a new life. But when her grandmother asks her to sleep under a wedding ring quilt, promising visions of true love, she doesn’t quite believe her. Until she falls asleep.

What was the inspiration for your story?

My grandmother was a quilter and she once gave me a wedding ring quilt and told me that when I slept under it the first night, the man I dreamed of, would be who I married. Of course it wasn't true, but I always thought it was a wonderful sentiment.

What genre(s) do you usually write?

Western historical or contemporary westerns

You've been granted a superpower for one week. What power would you choose and why?

Truth Seeker -- I would like to be able to tell when people were lying or telling the truth. I would watch TV and know who was lying and who was telling the truth.

What's your favorite thing to snack on while writing?

Skinny Pop

If you could excel at any rodeo sport which one would it be?

Rodeo Queen! Yes, I know it's not a sport, but it looks so cool.

What are the top three things on your bucket list?

Travel to Ireland, Alaska and England

Terri Osburn: After the Fall
Aspyn Fielding blames Tucker Stargill for not talking her brother out of riding bulls. When Colt is gravely injured, Aspyn hopes Tucker will finally see things her way, but she’s the one who needs a change of heart.

What was the inspiration for your story?

I watch bull riding all the time and wonder how the riders keep going with the certainty that they might not walk away from the next ride. I also have to wonder how their loved ones deal with watching them do it.

What genre(s) do you usually write?

Contemporary Romance

You've been granted a superpower for one week. What power would you choose and why?

Healing, because that seems to be what this world sorely needs right now.

What do you enjoy doing when you're not writing?

Either attending concerts or watching sports.

What's your favorite western, cowboy, or horse movie?

Has to be Rio Bravo. Who can resist John Wayne, Dean Martin, and Ricky Nelson all together? Plus the fabulous Angie Dickinson.

Tell us three surprising things about yourself.

I was once a radio DJ. I was a pageant queen when I was little. I used to twirl baton.

What are the top three things on your bucket list?

Travel Europe, see the Great Divide, become a grandmother.

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