Novel PASTimes: If you were sent to a deserted island, what three things would you take?

Penelope Pottifer:   I would take a large pocket knife, a large sun hat and John Buxton.   He is all I would really need to survive, but the other two things would come in very handy.  If it must be someone or something real, I would bring my best friend.

Novel PASTimes: What is your idea of a perfect day? 

Penelope Pottifer:   Anything new and exciting.   A trip to Egypt, to explore the pyramids, a day sneaking around some palace grounds, an adventure on an old sail boat.  Anything slightly dangerous and entirely brand new.  But I need my best friend with me.  I can’t imagine having any adventures without my best friend.

Novel PASTimes: What is your favorite food?

Penelope Pottifer:   Anything that is served around Christmas time.  I love holiday foods.  Chocolate, mulled cider, candy canes, roast turkey and ham.  It’s all my favorite.

Novel PASTimes: If I asked you to write an entry in your journal, what would it be about?

Penelope Pottifer:   I don’t write in a journal, I have no time with writing Enduring Promises of the Heart. Besides, I pour my whole soul out on every page, but if I did, I would write about my disappointments in myself, that I am not able to be as strong as my characters.  I would also write about my joys and heartaches, particularly about my relationships with family and friends.  Inevitably though, my mind would drift to a tomb near the Nile or a castle in England and I would write down story ideas before I forgot them.

Purchase Enduring Promises of the Heart on Amazon.

Valerie loveless has a love for happy endings and bright comedy. A native to the California high desert, she now considers Utah her home, where she lives with her husband, three children, and two Chihuahuas. Growing up in a family of seven kids, Valerie learned to embrace her unique creativity and way of looking at the world and hope it will enrich the lives of others. In 2015, she published two children’s books, Singing Not So Sweetly and Anabelle Loves Babies. She believes writing is the ultimate end-all for creative pursuits because there are no limits to what you can create. You can learn more at http://www.valerieloveless.info.

If you would like more information about Valerie, visit her website at http://www.valerieloveless.info

If you had a free day with no responsibilities and your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do? I would spend my free day outside. I might visit the local hot springs, or if the weather was warm, I might go fishing and wade in the creek. I love the water.

What impression do you make on people when they first meet you? I can come across as intense. I’ve also been accused of ‘playing God’ by trying to fix other people’s problems.

What’s your idea of a good marriage? A good marriage is what my parents had: two people who loved each other so much that their struggles seemed minor compared to their feelings for each other.

What are you most proud of about your life? I’m proud of joining the Texas Rangers. It was a big risk to come to an unfamiliar state and settle here, but a bigger risk to join the Rangers knowing how dangerous the job was. I decided that the risk was worth it to help save others.

What are you most ashamed of in your life? Envy. I was always envious of my older brother, Nate. An exceptional bounty-hunter, he made a name for himself before I moved away. I was jealous and wanted to be like him, but in a way that was what drove me to move away and join the rangers, so although I regret the negative feelings, I’m glad I made the choices I did.

What do you believe about God? I believe that God is good. He has plans to help me thrive, but sometimes I thwart His plans, by asserting my own will where His belongs.

Is there anything you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t done? I’ve always wanted to see the ocean. Now that I live in Austin, I’m only 200 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, so maybe someday soon I’ll get to visit.

What’s the worst thing that’s happened in your life? What did you learn from it? My mother dying. I learned that grief is a hard thing and it consumed my father for a long time before he accepted it. We knew that my mother was with Jesus and that helped all of us deal with her death, but living without her was a huge challenge. Our housekeeper, Rosa, helped us all through our grief. She was like a second mother.

Tell me about your best friend. My best-friend died recently. He was murdered by outlaws while investigating an incident that happened at Olive Ranch. Bose was a good man. Taught me a great deal of what I know. He was a deputy-sheriff in Lee County.

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done to someone? Why? Killed them. It’s hard to take a life when you don’t think their soul is going to rest in peace. It’s a somber thing to have to do, but sometimes there is no better option.

What would you like it to say on your tombstone? I hope it will say I was a husband and father who lived my life for the Lord Jesus Christ.

Describe your ideal mate. She’ll be kind and gentle. If I’m extra lucky, she’ll be a good cook. If I’m truly blessed, she’ll love God as much as I do.

What are you most afraid of? Death. Not my own, but the death of my loved ones. I’ve lost my mother and my best friend, and I got through it, but I hope I don’t lose anyone else close to me any time soon.

What do you like best about yourself? Least? They sort of go together. What is best about me in some situations can be the worst in others. I’ll do anything for a friend, and usually that’s good, but sometimes it can be thing I like least since I sometimes allow others to take advantage of me.

What do you like best and least about the other characters in your book? Well, I like Ella’s kind heart and sweet disposition, but I hate her fear. I wish I could take it away. Her father sounds like he was good when she was younger, but I can’t see past my hatred of what he’s done to her to understand her love for him.

As for the sheriff, he’s a good man, but he overlooks the flaws in his new deputies. I find that aggravating.

And Clara, well, I have nothing but good things to say about her. I couldn’t ask for a better a friend.

Lawfully Promised: When Ella Jamison’s father gets in trouble with the law, he offers up his only daughter to get the Texas ranger on his trail to look the other way. Fear over what might become of her father if arrested obligates Ella to go along with his plan.
Isaiah Hayes doesn’t accept bribes, but his concern for Miss Jamison, should he leave her to Mr. Jamison’s abuse, compels Isaiah to accept the offer. While investigating the Christmas Eve hangings and Christmas Day Massacre, Isaiah tries to make Ella comfortable in his meager dwelling. Ella battles her fears as she tries to adjust to a new home with a man she fears, almost as much as the father who gave her away. Promises are made to broken, aren’t they? Purchase Lawfully Promised on Amazon or read it for free in KU. 

Elle E. Kay lives in the Back Mountain area of Pennsylvania. She loves life in the country on her little farmette. She lives with her loving husband, Joe; her only son, Ian; her dog, Sammy; her goats, sheep, rabbits, chickens, turkey, pheasants and guineas.

Elle is a born-again christian with a deep faith and love for the Lord Jesus Christ. She desires to learn how to live for Him and to put Him first. She writes children’s books under the name Ellie Mae Kay.

Visit Elle on her website: https://www.elleekay.com

Elle on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElleEKay7/

Elle on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ElleEKay7

Elle’s books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Elle-E.-Kay/e/B01C0TI9J2%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share