I’m a new Love Inspired author and I was thrilled to be invited to join the Craftie Ladies of Love Inspired Romance.I’m also a native Upstate New Yorker. Upstate is quite different from the Downstate New York City area. Upstate we have dairy farms, mountains, lakes, orchards, and lots of villages and hamlets with fewer than 5,000 people that aren’t near any major cities. Wyoming County in Western New York, where I grew up, is the number one diary county in the state and has about the same number of milk cows as people (40,000). Little know fact: One year — I won’t say what year — I was runner-up Wyoming County Maple Princess. And us Upstaters from Western New York root for the Buffalo Bills, not the NY Giants or Jets, no matter where we live.
My extended family — husband, daughter, son-in-law, and two grandchildren — lives on a small farm near the Albany/Greene County line where my son-in-law raises organic hogs and vegetables. Our son lives about 20 minutes away. This is Benny, our first boar, and the picture above is of our back fields ready to be planted with winter rye.
As an Upstater, I have a personal mission to introduce others to my part of New York State. All my contemporary books are set in Upstate New York. My first Love Inspired, Small-Town Sweethearts (January 2012), and the one I’m currently working on, tentatively titled Small-Town Dad, take place at Paradox Lake in the Adirondack Mountains, about two hours north of our house. My book cover captures the setting exactly. I love it.
Have I sold you? Are you ready to come visit us Upstate? Benny is always up for visitors.
Jean C. Gordon
Posts
Jean, thank you for sharing your beautiful home area with us! I love the photos, especially your piggy! :)
ReplyDeleteThe cover is so pretty. It reminds me of a Thomas Kinkade painting!
What a great cover. I think Missy definitely has it right about the Thomas Kinkade influence. Just lovely.
ReplyDeleteYes, I have already told my husband there is far more to New York than NYC where my sister lives. How are the leaves this fall?
Peace, Julie
Love the cover (and that's a big way to success in selling a book), I'm hopeless with small-towns sweethearts stories, I'm head over heels with your pigglet and I'm going to enjoy your book very much.
ReplyDeleteWishing you the best,
Teresa
P.S. I had already suspected that New York wasn't only skycrappers (hope the word is this one) when from time to time some Star buys a ranch near and from CSI New York (I'm not American) I had difficulty understanding where and how could it possibly be. Thank you also for sharing that bit of your lovely Country
I'm jealous. That is an awesome cover. And, perfect title.
ReplyDeleteI've only been to NY once adn that was to Manhatten. Of course, I traveled by train from Chicago to Manhatten so I got to see plenty of things.
Jean,
We're so glad you joined us.
Upstate NY is beautiful! Nice to meet you Jean!
ReplyDeleteFun to learn more about you, Jean. I love visiting Upstate NY, beautiful.
ReplyDeleteJean, upstate New York is gorgeous! I'll bet you get some glorious colors during autumn.
ReplyDeleteWelcome to Love Inspired and the Craftie Ladies!
ooooh - what a lovely cover and speak-to-me title!
ReplyDeleteAnd I have a friend who lives in upstate New York - the way she describes it always makes me wish I could visit her there - your post just reinforced that
Hi Jean,
ReplyDeleteLove your cover and Benny!!!
Ruth Logan Herne, another LI author, writes about Upstate NY, and I've fallen in love with the area through her books. Glad to know yours are set in that same special locale.
Looking forward to reading your story!
Congrats on joining the LI family.
Love hearing about where you live! Can't wait to read your book....beautiful cover!
ReplyDeleteWow, look at all of these comments. I tried to come on and read them comments at work today, but couldn't. I think IT limits our blog access.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, thanks everyone. And I can't say enough times how much I love my cover.
As for our leaves this fall, they aren't as pretty as sometimes. Too much rain this spring and summer.
I live in WNY and love reading books set in my area. I'll be sure to look for yours.
ReplyDeleteI visited your upstate NY in 2006. We drove through the Adirondacks and then stopped in Albany. Reminded us of home-only we don't have mts. :-)
ReplyDeleteJoy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and visiting our craftie ladies. We're glad you're here.
Joy -- Always good to meet another native WNY. One of my Avalon Books is set in a fictitious village in Genesee County. Love Undercover. Your local library may have it.
ReplyDeleteI hope your book does well. The cover looks very inviting. Loved your story about your home and I too love the country.
ReplyDeletejennydtipton@gmail.com
Jean,
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your book and I love the cover! My husband is from the Adirondack area and the cover portrays the beauty of that area so well. I'm also an upstater, just outside Schenectady. Best wishes on the success of your book.