Author Spotlight: Have You Met Author Lenora Worth?

We have a winner! Congratulations, Valri Western, you have won an ebook copy of The X-Mas Club from Lenora! She will be in touch. Thanks to everyone who stopped by and commented!  Happy holidays, mes amies!

I think this is Lenora Worth’s first time here on the blog and I’m so delighted to have her join us with her new Tule holiday release, The X-Mas Club. A member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Honor Rolls, Lenora Worth writes romance and romantic suspense for Harlequin’s Love Inspired and sweet romance for Tule Publishing. Her books have finaled in the ACFW Carol Awards. She also received the Romantic Times Pioneer Award for Inspirational Fiction. Lenora is a NY Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestselling writer and a 2019 RWA RITA® Finalist. With eighty-plus books published and over three million books in print, she enjoys adventures with her retired husband and loves reading, baking and shopping…especially shoe shopping.

Lenora has an ebook copy The X-Mas Club for one lucky commenter, so say hi below and tell us what your favorite holiday dessert is. We’ll draw a winner on Saturday at noon. 

Lenora, take it away…

Hello! It’s so great to be here with Nan. Thank you for having me, Nan.

I’m Lenora Worth and as of next March, I will have been a published writer for thirty years. I started with Avalon (library only romance novels) and when I got the call I was in bed with the flu! Thought I was hallucinating! I wrote two more sweet novels for them and later wrote two single titles for Leisure—a time-travel and a contemporary. My heart was, and still is, in sweet romance, so 1996 my former agent told me about the Love Inspired line opening up at Harlequin. I had an idea for a book that I thought might work. So I pitched it to the acquiring editor at a conference in Dallas. She asked for a proposal which I went home and wrote. Three weeks later, I got the call. They wanted me to write for Love Inspired. I’ve been with that imprint for twenty-five years. I was there from the start and I’m still kicking. I also wrote five books for one of my favorite lines—Super Romance.

These days I write LI suspense and LI Amish (something I never dreamed I’d write but it’s a break from suspense and the stories involve the same conflict of any sweet romance, with a few restrictions, of course. Then in 2015, a friend told me about Tule Publishing. I’ve written ten books for Tule—all contemporary sweet romance—and I’ve enjoyed having another outlet for the kind of stories I love. And in 2019, Kensington offered me a three- book contract to write mainstream Amish fiction. I just completed the last book in The Shadow Lake series, set in western Pennsylvania near Lake Erie. I’ve loved being able to expand the plots and deal with heavier subjects in these books. I’ve had the best time writing for several different publishers and doing some Indie work.

So you’re all caught up. Recently I celebrated my 80th book with Harlequin, and I’ve signed a contract with Barbour Publishing to be part of a Christmas contemporary novella collection set in Louisiana, where I lived for thirty years. I’m excited about that because I’m a Southern girl and most of my books are set in Southern states. I was born and grew up in Georgia, and now I live in Florida with my retired husband. Our two grown children live nearby. I love walking on the beach which is a few miles from my house. During the pandemic, we bought a fixer-upper lake house for weekends, so now I have another great writing place. My goal is to hold writing retreats there once we’re done renovating. I’ve had one already with two dear friends. We had a great weekend. (My husband renovates while I make up things!)

Once, I made the NY Times bestseller list with an LI Suspense (Body of Evidence.) The day that happened I was cleaning house (in my PJs with no makeup) because I was having a party that night. I started getting flowers and my phone and my laptop started pinging with emails and messages. My editor called and let me know. The flower delivery lady (who kept coming back) asked me if I was sick. I laughed and explained. It was such a shock! But so much fun. Since then my books have been on both the Publishers Weekly and USA Today bestsellers lists. I write this not so much to brag, but in awe that this could even happen to a country girl like me.

One of the things I love about this job—we get to meet so many interesting people! Writers are very loyal to each other and we support each other. I’ve had friends help me brainstorm, plot, or rewrite books. They talk me down when I’m upset and they talk me up when a book comes out and needs some sharing! It’s been a great career and I’m so thankful! Thanks, Nan, for having me today. You are a treasure!

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The X-Mas Club

Christmas is a time for miracles…

After a tragic traffic accident several years ago, Veronica Cearley has avoided all socializing and celebrating—especially during Christmas. Her daughter wants her mother back and finally gives her an ultimatum: this year, she’s spending Christmas with her fiancé’s family, and if Veronica doesn’t rediscover the joy in life, she won’t be involved in planning her spring wedding. When Veronica finds a flyer inviting people to attend a “Not a Christmas Club” on her daily walk, she wonders if fate has played into her hand.

Cullen Murdock doesn’t want to spend Christmas alone. He’s back in Hidden Mountain, Georgia, on business, and while he and the town have a history, he’d prefer to keep it locked in the past. He puts a plan in motion to ensure he has company for the holiday, hoping that the other lonely people he’s invited are willing to accept his mysterious invitation and make a few positive life changes.

Forced together with three other lonesome people, Veronica and Cullen fall hard and fast, but will Cullen’s secret steal their newfound Christmas spirit?

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