Looking Out the Window: The Cowboys and Christmas Blog Tour with Shanna Hatfield. Fun Character Interview. Link to a Facebook Party with Prizes
Welcome to the
Cowboys & Christmas
Blog Tour!
A kickoff of new holiday romances by Shanna Hatfield
and a fundraiser for the Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund
An Interview with Two Heroes
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to listen to a conversation between two heroes from different eras?
Today, Shanna Hatfield brings together two of her popular heroes for an interesting interview. Luke Granger is a banker, rancher, and involved community member in The Christmas Bargain, a sweet Victorian romance taking place in 1893 in Hardman, Oregon. Tate Morgan is from the contemporary sweet romance The Christmas Cowboy. He’s a retired saddle bronc rider who calls his ranch near Kennewick, Washington home.
Welcome to you both. Tell us a little about life where you live.Luke: I live in the small but bustling community of Hardman, Oregon in Eastern Oregon. We have several churches, a school, a newspaper office, skating rink and mercantile there. My wife, Filly, and I live in the house my parents originally built on the edge of town where I raise cattle and a few horses.
Tate: I live on the ranch that my grandfather started back in the early 1900s. We’re about thirty miles from Kennewick, Washington. We primarily raise beef cattle, wheat, and hay.
What does a typical day entail for each of you?
Luke: My day begins by donning my chore clothes and going out to feed the horses and cattle. I check the coal level in the basement furnace and stoke up the stove in the kitchen before I go out. When I return from completing the chores, I take a bath and dress for work at the bank while Filly makes breakfast. Filly frequently reminds me how fortunate we are to have indoor plumbing and all the latest conveniences in the kitchen, like a refrigerator. After breakfast, I kiss my Filly and our baby, Maura, goodbye then head off to the bank for the day. I also serve on the school board and help at the Christian Church where my friend Chauncy Dodd is the pastor. It is a marvel to me that we have such modern communications with the speed of letters traveling back and forth across the country not mention the telegraph.
Tate: I’m all for modern communication. (Grins and hands Luke his cell phone, giving him a brief explanation of how it works. While Luke reads an article about Hardman Tate Googled, he talks about his day). My wife, Kenzie, and I are both early risers. I get started on the chores outside while she makes breakfast. We can almost get through a cup of coffee before our little boy, Gideon, wakes up. Since we have such a big place, I meet with our ranch foreman every morning to go over details for the day before we head out to work. I can’t imagine trying to feed the cattle without some of our modern conveniences like an enclosed tractor cab. It makes it nice on these cold mornings to step into that welcome heat.
Luke: Tractor? I’ve heard of tractors. Are you telling me they come with heat?
Tate: Sure do. (He takes the phone from Luke and shows him a photo of a big John Deere tractor).
What’s your favorite thing about your home?
Luke: (Smiles) Without a doubt, my wife is what makes it home. Filly is the best thing that ever happened to me.
Tate: (Nods in agreement) Kenzie turned a quiet ol’ ranch house back into a home. She’s the best and first thing that comes to mind when I think about home.
What’s about Christmas? What do you love most about the holiday?
Luke and Tate: (Answer simultaneously) The treats! (Looking at each other, they smirk)
Tate: Kenzie is an amazing cook and she makes these gingerbread bars that are so good. I once compared the bars to her kisses… One is just a taste, two gets me started, and three leaves me hungry for more.
Luke: (Shaking his head) Filly has a reputation as one of the best cooks in the county. She makes all sorts of delectable treats during the holiday season. We most always have pralines and caramels and sweet breads. My brother-in-law, Blake, is quite partial to her kisses.
Tate: (Raising an inquisitive eyebrow) Sounds like a friendly brother-in-law.
Luke: It’s a cookie! The man nearly eats me out of house and home since my sister can’t cook.
Tell us one thing you’ve done that your wife wouldn’t want you to share.
Luke: When I first married Filly, she’d never been kissed. (Tate gives him an incredulous look.) I offered to give her lessons and to further tease her, I sent the boy who runs errands at the mercantile to the house with a container of lip salve. Her face was as red as a holly berry when she mentioned receiving my little gift.
Tate: Kenzie will probably make me sleep in the bunkhouse for sharing this, but she likes to sing Christmas songs when she thinks no one is listening, only she changes the words to a bunch of nonsensical craziness. She also has a thing for Christmas pjs. She wears them the entire month of December.
Luke: What are pjs?
Tate: Pajamas. Like these (pulls up a photo on his phone, causing Luke’s eyes to widen in surprise).
Luke: It appears the world has drastically changed.
Tate: That’s a fact.
Thank you both for joining us. Any parting words for our readers?
Tate: If you enjoy historical fiction, sweet romances, or good westerns, I hope you’ll consider reading our stories in the Hardman Holidays and Rodeo Romance series.
Luke: Be sure to check out The Christmas Calamity, releasing Nov. 13. My assistant Arlan really gets into the magic of the season with the arrival of a prestidigitator in town.
Tate: I’ve never met a prestidigitator, although I’ve been around some great rodeo clowns.
(The two men get to their feet.)
Luke: If you aren’t in a hurry, might you have a moment to explain to me what happened in the last hundred or so years?
Tate: Sure. I’d like to know how…
Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund®
Now through Dec. 24, I’ll donate 10 percent of the net proceeds from all my book sales to the Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund.
The JCCF is a non-profit organization that assists rodeo athletes who’ve sustained catastrophic injuries and are unable to work for an extended period.Where to Find The Books
Start the Rodeo Romance Series with The Christmas Cowboy.
Travel back to a different time with the historic Hardman Holiday Series,
beginning with The Christmas Bargain.
You’re Invited to PARTY!
You’re invited to join in the online Cowboys Christmas Facebook Party Thursday, Nov. 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (PST). Drop in anytime during those four hours to enter to win great prizes, chat with guest authors, and more! Here’s the link to the party: http://tinyurl.com/cowboychristmaspartyThe third book in the Hardman Holidays sweet Victorian romance series releases that day! The Christmas Calamity takes readers back to Hardman just in time for the holiday season. Preorders are available now for just $1.99 on Kindle. You can reserve your copy here: http://amzn.com/B00OGOO994
In addition, the first book in the Hardman Holidays series, The Christmas Bargain, will be available free that day, as well!
Enter to Win Prizes!
To enter the drawing for an Amazon gift card, autographed books, chocolates, original western artwork, and more fun goodies, fill out this form.http://tinyurl.com/cowboychristmasprizes
About Shanna Hatfield
A hopeless romantic with a bit of sarcasm thrown in for good measure, Shanna Hatfield is a bestselling author of sweet romantic fiction written with a healthy dose of humor. In addition to blogging and eating too much chocolate, she is completely smitten with her husband, lovingly known as Captain Cavedweller.Shanna creates character-driven romances with realistic heroes and heroines. Her historical westerns have been described as “reminiscent of the era captured by Bonanza and The Virginian” while her contemporary works have been called “laugh-out-loud funny, and a little heart-pumping sexy without being explicit in any way.”
She is a member of Western Writers of America, Women Writing the West, and Romance Writers of America.
Find Shanna’s books at:
Amazon | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords | Apple
Shanna loves to hear from readers! Follow her online:
ShannaHatfield | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads | You Tube | Twitter
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