Song of Sugar Sands
Sugar Sands Book Two
 
Set in the late 1970s, SONG OF SUGAR SANDS is chronologically the first novel in the Sugar Sands series. The protagonists, Peter and Acadia, appeared as minor characters in JOY AFTER NOON, which was Sugar Sands Book One (set in the early 1980s). The two novels stand alone and can be read in either sequence. I wrote SONG OF SUGAR SANDS first, but published JOY AFTER NOON first.
 
SONG OF SUGAR SANDS is a novel about—in the words of William Faulkner—the human heart in conflict with itself. Who hasn’t, at least occasionally, struggled with doubts about her faith in God or about God’s personal interest in her life? Acadia Powers’ faith wavers at an early age as she observes her parents behaving in a manner she views as hypocritical. She has about given up on God when, in college, she meets and falls for Peter O’Neil, a student with a commitment to sharing his faith. 
 
SONG OF SUGAR SANDS is the story of their romance and the first rocky year of marriage.  It is a love story, but also the story of Acadia’s struggle to come to terms with issues of faith. College student Acadia Powers is a late bloomer who is just learning to enjoy her newfound attractiveness to the opposite sex when she and Peter O’Neil meet at a college party.  In that first meeting, Acadia discovers Peter's interest in spreading his beliefs, but believes she can cure him of what she views as an unhealthy obsession.  She knows herself to be entirely the wrong sort of person to even think of marrying a would-be preacher. 
 
Nonetheless, Peter’s faith in Acadia proves almost as unshakable as his faith in God; and, after much debate, she agrees to marry him.  After graduation and a simple wedding ceremony, they enjoy a brief honeymoon before moving to Sugar Sands, Alabama, where Peter has accepted his first preaching assignment, and Acadia takes a job teaching high school.
 
Acadia’s misgivings about herself in the role of a minister’s wife resurface as the challenges facing the couple begin to mount. First, one of her students attempts suicide after confiding her problems in Acadia.  Then, when Beatrice Wood—the woman who has helped Acadia to survive this far—reveals that she has terminal cancer, Acadia almost quits.  She must learn that her strength doesn’t come from herself, or from Beatrice.
 
Throughout Acadia is haunted by the memory of certain things she did before meeting Peter, things she has never confided in him.  Acadia’s sense of identity is threatened as she first strives to be who Peter wants her to be, and later, for a time, who the church members want.  As she loses sight of who God wants her to be, she questions who she is, where she’s going, and whether there is hope for her or for her marriage.  Eventually she begins to identify with the blind man, whose sight is restored and recorded in Mark 8.  When she confesses the sins that have haunted her, with her confession comes the beginning of hope. Still her vision is clouded.  Like the blind man in Mark 8, Acadia learns to see clearly in stages rather than all at once.
 
 
Praise for Sugar Sands Book One:
 
Sometimes the situation seems perfect, but underneath lie secrets and time bombs ready to explode. Apart from the wonderful characterization, the quickly increasing pace of the plot, and the introspection, there are a scattering of lovely insights in the story.
            --Laura Hogg, Author (A.K.A. Lara MacGregor)

Five stars. I look forward to getting my hands on the next installment from the Sugar Sands series. I cannot wait to see what happens next. 
            --Amy Booksy, Blogger
 
Prepare yourself for a roller coaster of emotions in this one.
            --Andi’s Book Reviews
 
This was a thought-provoking, heart-stopping read. The family dynamics portrayed in this book were handled realistically yet respectfully … seeing how easily miscommunication can destroy a relationship.
          --Sharing Links and Wisdom, Blog
 
Whether you're a daughter, wife, step-mother, housewife, professional or any combination, Debra Coleman Jeter has created a character you'll embrace.
            --Jane Wells, writer
 

I enjoy looking at issues from multiple angles so I'm drawn to multiple points-of-view (POV) as a writer. There are three points-of-view from which I tell the story of Joy After Noon. Here are some facts about each of the main characters, including these three (all female) plus one important male character. 
 
Joy Hancock
            Joy is a college professor who has never been seriously in love … until she meets the gorgeous widower Ray Jenkins, single parent to two teenage girls. Joy doubts her own attractiveness, but Ray makes her feel beautiful inside and out. When the girls try to undermine her role in the household, she resolves to make her marriage work, one way or another.
 
 Ray Jenkins
Ray, seemingly successful banker, finds himself facing ethical dilemmas as his associates negotiate a dubious merger and then try to hide the undesirable financial consequences. Too caught up in his business concerns, he fails to keep sight of what’s going on at home, both with his daughters and with his new wife.

Marianne Jenkins
            Marianne has aspired all her life to please her demanding perfectionist mother, even after that mother’s death. She cannot live up to her own standards of perfectionism, either as a ballerina or as a cheerleader longing for popularity. She views her new step-mother as anything but perfect. What can her dad possibly see in Joy?
 
Jenny Jenkins
            Jenny, the younger daughter, knows she could never come near to the example set by Marianne, so why try? At least she has a friend—the charming, quirky, outspoken, too old-for-her-years Claudia. Jenny can’t help fantasizing about Claudia’s bad-boy, charming brother Alex. From shoplifting to lying to drugs, Jenny follows Claudia’s lead from one escapade to another … until one night, thing get out of hand. Way out.  
 
 

We all have mood swings but …
Do Writers Have More?
 
            As a writer, I alternate between two types of extreme moods: periods when I’m excited about a project and the way my sentences seem to flow, and others when I read what I’ve written and find it disappointing and lame. From Ernest Hemingway to Sylvia Plath to Virginia Woolf, there’s a long history of writers and other artists who suffer bouts of depression. Is there a good reason for this, or does depression defy reason?
 
As a reader, I similarly alternate between extremes, which seem heightened when I think of myself as a writer. There are times when I’m reading something that is so well written and so captivating that I wonder how I could ever imagine I could hold my own in a world with such talented writers. Then there are times when I can’t seem to find a single book to read that grabs and holds my attention. I don’t know if my novel will do this for you, but I’d love to hear your thoughts.
 
I know I have much to learn about my craft, and most of the time I’m hopeful that I can grow as a writer. I know, though, that it’s more important to grow in generosity and kindness, as a human being and a Christian.
 
Looking for a good book? I’d love it if you’d be willing to try mine. Joy After Noon is the first novel in my new Sugar Sands series. To learn more, visit one (or more) of these websites featuring my novel the next couple of weeks:
 
April 29: Romance Novel Giveaways
April 30: Fabulous and Brunette
May 1: BooksChatter
May 1: Hearts and Scribbles
May 2: Christine Young
May 3: All the Ups and Downs
May 6: Readeropolis
May 7: All Things Romance
May 7: Nickie's Views and Interviews
May 8: Wendi Zwaduk - Romance to Make Your Heart Race
May 9: Stormy Nights Reviewing and Bloggin'
May 10: A Chick Who Reads
May 13: Our Town Book Reviews
May 14: Candrel's Crafts, Cooks, and Characters
May 15: So Many Books
May 16: Straight From the Library
May 17: Locks, Hooks and Books

When Your Past Looms Longer than Your Future
by
Debra Coleman Jeter
 
            When my grandfather lay dying of pancreatic cancer, he remarked that he could remember his entire life in the space of a few minutes. But could he really? Of course not, but I don’t doubt that all he could remember just then took only a few minutes. Granted, he was only sixty, younger than I am now. Years later, my aunt, who died of lung cancer at about the same age, made a similar statement the last time I saw her. “Our life here really is just a vapor,” she said. I believe she was quoting James 4:14:
 
            What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. ESV
 
            Last night my husband and I watched a television show in which a man kept re-watching videos of his late wife and of their life together. I commented that though we have loads of photos, we have very few videos of ourselves, which might be for the best.
 
            If you’re blessed, as I am, to have spouse, parents, and  children and grandchildren still in your life, we should be so thankful. If we have lost loved ones, we should cherish the memory of having had them in our life.
 
            Yet, I believe God wants us to live in the present. Remember when David grieved his dying child and pleaded with God to spare him? When the child died, however, he dressed and ate and moved forward. When questioned, David said: “…But now that the baby is dead, why should I fast? I can’t bring him back to life. Someday I will go to him, but he cannot come back to me.” 2 Samuel 12: 23 NCV
 
            I know moving forward is not that easy. Perhaps my greatest fear is of the loss of my loved ones, and particularly at an age that feels premature to me, when they have not lived as long as I hope they will. But we cannot fully live our lives as we should if we’re too busy looking back or dreading what lies ahead.
 
            I sit and look out this morning at a calm silvery sea with the sunlight peeking through the clouds, and I think what a glorious world we live in and what a blessing today truly is. As we read in Psalm 118: 24: This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” (NKJV).

​Is There a Troll in Your Life?
by
Debra Coleman Jeter
 
On the evening of my book launch for Joy After Noon, a one-star review appeared on my Amazon page. Because it was the only review and had appeared so quickly, it caught my attention at once. I read:
 
Total waste of time. “Wish I could recommend this book; but it was a waste of time to read. Author needs to consider another line of work.”
 
I lay awake that night, unsettled by a head full of swirling thoughts. Was I so horrible a writer as to deserve a review of this nature? I knew, of course, that not everyone would love my books. I’d read some pretty harsh reviews of books by other authors I admired, books I cherished. So I was prepared for criticism. But not for abuse. Did I have an enemy; and if so, who? The review felt too personal to be from a stranger. As a teacher for over twenty years, I’d given more than a few poor grades. Could the review be from a former student?
 
When I posted a statement on my launch website (seeking other reviews to balance this one), I was introduced to a new term. New to me, that is, but not to those more savvy in the ways of the internet. Troll. An internet troll.
 
This led me to do a bit more investigating, and here’s what I found:
 
I discovered that internet trolls often review products or books they have not even tried. They trash the creative efforts of others without giving them a fair chance.
 
In my case, the troll/reviewer identified herself on Feb. 28, 2019, when the review was initially posted, as “Marie.” My new novel had only been made available a day or so before, and Amazon takes up to 48 hours to approve a new review.  Not a verified purchaser, she subsequently changed her name twice in the first week of March, first to Joan and then to Sammie. I found a similar review from the same “Marie” (subsequently showing up as Sammie) on my first novel, The Ticket: one star review with the heading “Save time, and toss it!”
 
Then, on the same day that Joan became Sammie, I discovered that my nonfiction book “Pshaw, It’s Me Grandson” had just received a new one-star review in March of 2019 from the same reviewer though the book was published 13 years earlier: “Blah … you will be glad you didn’t buy it.” Because this book had not been rated often (only 4 reviews, all 5 star), the 1-star review from Sammie dropped my average from 5 to 2.5 because Amazon weights recent reviews more heavily than older ones.
 
If she really dislikes my books so much, why would she keep reading them—and rush to obtain a copy of Joy After Noon as soon as it came out (although Amazon doesn’t list her as a verified purchaser)? I have no idea who she is or why she has singled me out.
 
Having submitted countless academic papers over the years and having received my fair share of rejection letters, I believed I’d grown a thick skin. I have advised junior faculty I mentored on multiple occasions not to have thin skin when submitting their research to journals. Yet, here I was, lying awake over a sentence or two dashed out by someone who, most likely, had never seen—much less read—my books.
 
As frustrating as this is for the writer or seller or artist, I also have to wonder what experiences in the trolls’ past motivates them to do such a thing—to waste precious moments of life that could be spent in a hundred more productive ways in an effort to get a reaction or cause pain. In the end, you have to feel sorry for the troll.

Online Book Launch:  JOY AFTER NOON
 
            I’m no expert on this topic, not by a long shot. Still, I thought I’d share what I’ve learned in case it might be useful to someone planning a book launch.
           
            First, things can happen fast, so it pays to be prepared. Organize as much as possible before the event. Try to anticipate some of the questions likely to arise. For example, what’s the book about? Where did the idea originate? How did you design, or choose, your cover? What’s the underlying message or theme? If you can write a brief paragraph to answer some of these, you can copy and paste it into the comments during the launch to save typing and time. You should advise participants to hit the “refresh” button frequently during the launch or they will miss many of the comments—and do this yourself.
 
            I created a series of questions that relate to the book but do not require participants to have read it yet. Joy After Noon deals with a second marriage for the husband, and the wife feels threatened by the stellar qualities of the deceased first wife. So I posed a question about jealousy. She also has to deal with step-daughters who are in the throes of teenage angst. So I posed a question about our fears for our kids, step-kids, or grandkids. I located images on the internet to accompany each question. Before the launch began, I opened a WORD document with the questions and an images folder, so that I could quickly move back and forth, and paste a question (and accompanying image) if the discussion started to lag or drag.
 
            To encourage participation, I offered a lottery with participants getting entries for their comments. The winner would be announced the following evening to allow individuals unable to attend to read the posts for a full day following the launch and continue to comment.
 
            Alicia Paige Boggs organized the event for me, and she took charge of creating the invitations, sending reminders, and setting up the Facebook party. As I’m not skilled in the arena of social media, this took a lot of pressure off. I was able to invite my Facebook friends simply by clicking a button. When I sent her link to friends not on Facebook, or not in my Facebook account, I wasn’t quite sure how it would work or whether they would be able to see the party. I’d recommend sorting these technical issues out in advance so you know what to tell people who ask.
 
            Above all, relax and have fun! The event is a celebration. Your friends will be so supportive, they will make you feel good about your achievement. Who can ask for more?
             

 
            My husband and I recently watched the movie, We Bought a Zoo, for the second time. Although I wrote the first draft of my novel, Joy after Noon, before seeing the movie the first time (at least I think I did), one aspect resonated with me this time. Benjamin Mee, the character played by Matt Damon, is grieving the death of his wife. At one point he remarks to Kelly (Scarlett Johansson) that a love like his for his first wife only comes along once in a lifetime. By the end of the movie, Benjamin and Kelly have not exchanged more than a kiss. Still, the question comes to mind: What would it be like to be the second wife to someone who had loved that deeply?
            On the one hand, you might think he’s capable of great love and would make a wonderful husband. On the other, you might fear you would never be able to live up to his expectations. How can you compete with a ghost? I have not experienced this situation myself, but some of my readers undoubtedly have. I would love to hear of your experience.
            In my novel, Joy is the second wife of a widower. Not a great beauty, Joy lacks self-confidence, especially in the domestic realm. Much of the plot hinges on her failure to express her fears and Ray’s failure to articulate his feelings. Like many men, he assumes she knows how he feels, and she’s not secure enough to tell him that she needs to hear it from his lips.
            This type of communication problem isn’t limited to second marriages but extends to many first marriages (or even third) as well. Nor is it limited to one sex or the other. Too often we assume our partner knows our needs, or knows how we feel; and, too often, they do not.
            Another complication that often arises in second or third marriages is the relationship between the children and their new step-mother. Ray’s step-daughters resolve to bring Joy down, and for a time their plan seems to be working—until it backfires with dire, unforeseen consequences.

Title for my upcoming novel, Joy After Noon
Initially, the idea behind my title was that my protagonist Joy’s life has been lonely (and joy has been elusive) since her parents died when she was sixteen, and she has about given up on finding love when she meets Ray. She comes into his ready-made family and, for a time, this seems like a mistake to her. However, in the afternoon of her life, she finds love and joy.
When does the afternoon of life begin? Joy is much younger than I am, but she’s never been in a serious romantic relationship before, and she no longer expects one to happen when she meets Ray. She does not consider herself particularly desirable or even attractive, and she’s thrilled that Ray finds her beautiful. Doubts emerge, though, after the honeymoon, and soon she begins to question his real motives in marrying her.
Yet, I think the concept goes deeper than this, and the afternoon of life does not begin at a particular age, or even stage of life. In the novel, Ray has been pursuing career success and material acquisitions, and experiences a significant change of direction. Some fairly disastrous events in his workplace precipitate the change in Ray—events that threaten not only his financial stability but the core of who he is. Even Ray’s teenage daughters experience significant change, as they are forced to think about issues of life and death.
Carl Jung says: “The afternoon of life is just as full of meaning as the morning; only, its meaning and purpose are different.” Jung goes on to describe the afternoon of life as the time when we begin to shift away from the ego being the dominant force in our life moving toward a life journey that has real meaning. I also like the following quote: In the afternoon of your life, you don’t do life. You do what resonates with the callings of your soul. Follow the link below for an interesting interview on the subject with Dr. Wayne Dyer: https://www.positivelypositive.com/2013/06/28/the-afternoon-of-your-life/
​

​Technology has turned the world upside down. I used to believe that when I got older, I would be wiser and more knowledgeable and the young might even turn to me for guidance. Instead, the older I get, the harder it is to keep up with the advances. I have to look to my children for help. “What is Snapchat?” I ask; or “How do you share a picture from Instagram to Facebook?”
 
A friend of mine told me that when she got her cable installed for her television, she wanted to block certain channels from viewing by her kids. She couldn’t figure out how to do it, so what did she do? She asked her kids to block the channels from themselves!
 
But do these technologically savvy youngsters read books for pleasure? Do they know who Louisa May Alcott was or what Robert Lewis Stevenson wrote? Have they read Emily Bronte or Mark Twain? And it is not just kids who bury their (our) noses too often in their computers or smart phones. I am not saying it’s all bad. But we only have so many hours in a lifetime. Whereas we once spent our leisure time reading books, I wonder how many of those hours are now spent scrolling through the latest posts on Facebook or Instagram or some other social medium.
 
It would be a tremendous shame if our youth ceased to read for entertainment, for enlightenment. I think the best books are not the ones that tell us how to think or behave, but the ones that leave us with questions. I recently read a post from a reader who said that Gone with the Wind disturbed her for a long time because of its ending. I thought back to the first time I read it. I stumbled across the novel on the shelves of our local library and, believe it or not, I had never heard of it. I was engrossed. And, yes, I too was disturbed by the ending. But would we have remembered it as well or as long if Scarlett had fallen into Rhett’s arms in the finale? Instead, we have to wonder if she’s getting what she deserves, and to question what will happen tomorrow. After all, tomorrow is another day.
 
Books open doors in a way that nothing else can. They allow us to draw our own pictures of the setting and characters, rather than relying on the director or actors as in a movie. They expand our vocabulary, not because we look words up in the dictionary but because we learn from context as we encounter those same words again and again. When you are engaged in the story, you probably don’t want to take time to look words up even on your smart phone. And, honestly, you don’t need to!
 
Many of my favorite books can be categorized as young adult or even children’s books. But when I was in those age groups, I remember reading and cherishing many adult novels. Don’t limit yourselves to one genre or one reading level, or you might miss some true treasures.
 
Finally, I still believe we can learn a lot from our elders. Several years ago I had two women in a college class I was teaching who were mother and daughter. Both led busy lives. By the end of the course it became clear that the mother would earn one of the highest grades in the class, while the daughter was likely to fail. The mother confided to me that she had learned to snatch every available moment—while baking something in the oven, while drying a load of laundry, etc.—to read a paragraph or two of her text. I don’t know if her daughter ever learned that lesson, but it has certainly stayed with me over the years. If I have a longish drive or an appointment—hair salon, dentist, doctor’s office, whatever—you’ll rarely catch me without a book or an audio book!
 
Besides the Bible, can you name a book that has made a difference in your life?

      Last week at the library I found a novel I hadn’t read by one of my favorite feel-good authors: Maeve Binchy. I thought I’d read all of hers; and since she passed away, there would be no more new ones. Perhaps I’d read this one, I thought, and simply forgotten that I had. But as I began to read and discovered I had not, my delight reminded me of my pleasure as a child when a new Nancy Drew book landed on a shelf in the local bookstore. One of the things I appreciate about Maeve Binchy is the way, like Jan Karon and William Faulkner, she creates a community and brings its residents to vivid life.
 
     As I outgrew Bobbsey Twins, Trixie Beldon and Nancy Drew, I turned to Beany Malone books and Betsy-Tacy books. Along the way I fell in love with The Secret Garden, Huck Finn, To Kill a Mockingbird and everything Louisa May Alcott wrote.
 
     I cannot remember how old I was when I read The Caine Mutiny (maybe 8th grade) and Herman Wouk became my favorite author. The Caine Mutiny fascinated me with Wouk’s portrayal of real, flawed but likable characters, each with his own manner of speaking. There were no beautiful heroines or handsome heroes, no good guys or bad guys. You could recognize a character by his dialogue even if Wouk didn’t identify him. Wow! I also marveled at the variability of Wouk’s work: Marjorie Morningstar, Herbie Bookbinder, and Winds of War, to name a few. I have other favorites whose novels are far more similar to one another, and thus readily identified with their creator, than those of Wouk. Maeve Binchy falls into this category, as does Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters, and even F. Scott Fitzgerald.
 
     The Caine Mutiny was my favorite novel of all time until I encountered Crime and Punishment as required reading in 9th grade. Thus began my love affair with Russian authors: Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, Pasternak and Chekhov. From the Russian novels, I discovered that “not being able to put it down” was not the highest praise, in my opinion, for a book. It took me the best part of an entire summer to finish Dr. Zhivago, and I treasured it!
 
     In college, I met my husband, and we both read Henry James. I loved his writing, while my husband thought The American was one of the worst books ever written. I read Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre and The Great Gatsby in college too, all of which I still cherish and he doesn’t.
 
     I have so many favorites I’m bound to leave out many. I’m going to tackle them in broad, loose categories of my own design. Being southern myself, I’m drawn to southern writers and settings: To Kill a Mockingbird, Gone With the Wind, the stories and novels of William Faulkner, Carson McCullers, William Gay, Larry Brown, Flannery O’Connor, Eudora Welty, Donna Tartt, Lee Smith and Alice Walker.
 
     Some of the writers I admire are so far above my talent and ability, I don’t claim them even as influences, though perhaps they are at a subconscious level. Among my favorites are authors that I think of as more commercially successful but still incredibly talented and often lauded. These include: Anita Shreve (my daughter once told me that her writing reminded her of mine, and I was thrilled), Toni Morrison, Daphne du Maurier, Richard Russo, Margaret Atwood (she defies categorization), Anne Tyler, Ian McEwan, Barbara Kingsolver, Wally Lamb, Jeffery Eugenides, Elizabeth Berg. Some of my favorites focus on particular ethnicities. These include: Lisa See, Amy Tan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Khaled Hosseini.
 
     From time to time I like to read some variation of science fiction/fantasy, particularly Margaret Atwood (she’s worth mentioning again), Madelaine l ’Engle, C. S. Lewis (although I much prefer his non-fiction), Isaac Asimov and Nevil Shute. And should I admit it? I thoroughly enjoyed The Hunger Games.
 
     Finally I’ve always had a fondness for coming-of-age novels, and I discovered the Anne of Green Gables series (and Emily of New Moon) as an adult. Last year I visited L. M. Montgomery’s home in Prince Edward Island to see for myself the landscapes she described so beautifully.