A Sweethaven Homecoming! Book giveaway from Courtney Walsh!

After reading A Sweethaven Summer by Courtney Walsh we have been waiting (and not so patiently!) for the next installment of this fabulous three part series!  We are so excited to have Courtney with us today to not only share it with you but share why she wrote this series.  Read on to see the surprise at the end...

"Years ago, I decided it was time to take a little break from scrapbooking. I’d worked for about five years in the industry by that time, on design teams, as a contributing editor for a magazine, I even got to write two scrapbooking books. But let me tell you, I was burned out. I didn’t care if I ever saw another glue stick or paper flower again. So I took about four years off. And guess what I did in that time? Wrote books. about scrapbooking.
I know you’ll understand when I say, scrapbooking is the kind of hobby that gets in your blood. It’s not just about paper and glue. It’s not even just a creative outlet. It’s so much more than that… and that’s what I wanted to celebrate in my novels.

My first book, A Sweethaven Summer was released in February and just last week, I got to welcome the next in the series, A Sweethaven Homecoming! The frenzy of launching a book is wonderful and exciting, but in the quiet moments, I sit back and remember what it is I wanted to capture in the first place…
The way a scrapbook can transport you straight back in time.
The way the hobby can bring together the very best of friends.
The way it feels to look back and read the very thoughts you were thinking at any given moment.
The power of forgiveness…
To say scrapbooking has woven its way into the fabric of my being would be something of an understatement. As I created this fictitious cottage town on Lake Michigan, where five women come together because of an old scrapbook, I imagined their lives, full of conflict and stories they’d want told. I imagined the things that drove them apart and allowed friendship and forgiveness to be the driving force.
And it was all because of scrapbooking I was able to see those relationships so clearly.
Everyone may not understand why it is you choose to spend time pulling pictures onto cardstock and layering patterned papers and embellishments, but we scrapbookers, like the women in Sweethaven…we get it. We’re kindred spirits that way.
More than anyone, you’ll understand the heart and soul of these books…which is why I want to give away signed copies of both A Sweethaven Summer and A Sweethaven Homecoming and my new e-book, Step Up Your Supplies, from Ella Publishing to one lucky Scrapbook & Cards reader.

 
All you have to do is tell me…why do you scrapbook? And you’ll be entered to win! 

I’d love for you to check out my books on Amazon or Barnes and Noble and come over to my blog (www.courtneywalsh.typepad.com) this week for tons of inspiration, a big Sweethaven Scrapbooking Challenge & lots of prizes!

And you know I’d love to become friends, so feel free to head over to my Facebook Author page and say hi today!"  ~ Courtney

Congratulations again Courtney on the launch of your second book!  Ok, SCT readers, why do you scrapbook? 

Comments

[Janet B]

Wow--I'd love to win this! Thanks for the chance!

[RamonaP]

I scrapbook for so many reasons, but I think mostly to remember the magic of living one day at a time.

[Julie Gastelum]

To re-live the memories and to create something that can be cherished by the family.

Congratulations on the books...

[MeganM.]

Awesome!! I scrapbook because it's cheaper than therapy. lol. :) But really it helps me remember good times and show my family and friends how much I love them. :) Thanks for the fun giveaway!

[Chris R]

I scrapbook because I want to preserve the memories for future generations. I want my kids to look back and see where they've come from. I do it because it's fun and gives me a wonderful creative outlet.

[Christa Allgood]

I first started scrapbooking because of my love of photography! Now I do it to preserve memories and stories, to leave something for my kids, but mainly because it's FUN!!

[Rhonda]

This seems so awesome!!!!!!

[Karen M. Roth]

I scrapbook the very things that are a part of me, the beauty,the serene silence,the goofiness,the elegance, the pieces of my heart and soul in every single picture as well as my creative spirit so that others may see what I was blessed to be able to see for when I do completely lose my eyesight.

I have multiple illnesses and extreme pain that forbid my traveling very far. When I scrap it is a way for me to travel to another place and time that is much happier,peaceful and more beautiful than these putrid solid white walls I have to stare at day after day because I am mostly housebound except for doctor's visits except for the few excursions I am able to take with my loving husband to the park by the river, or maybe to our few mountain tops we can actually drive most the way up. It is a very painful drive for me but oh, so worth it!

When people look at everything I have scrapped I want them to feel the love I have for each of them. I want them to hear my laughter and see my smile. I want them to remember me as I am.

[Casey B.]

I scrapbook to get my photos out of boxes and off the computer in a fun and creative way that i can look through anytime i want! I also scrapbook as a way to be creative and crafty! And also because it is fun, i enjoy it, and its a way for me to escape everyday stress for awhile!! Thanks for the chance to win!

[Beneta]

I scrabbook to keep the memories that are near and dear to me close. Also to make sure that family and friends are able to look back at the same pictures and feel a relationship to the pictures of times gone past.

[conniemelancon]

I scrapbook to leave memories and stories for my family.

[Sue]

For so many reasons -- leave memories for the family whether they are good or not so good, remember places that have been visited, family history; but mostly because it is enjoyable and extremely good therapy.

[Sue Alg]

I scrapbook so pass on our family history to my grandkids. There is nothing like the thrill I feel when my teenage grandkids look at their young history as babies. Now I'm also starting to go back and document my and my husband's heritage. Thanks for much for a chance to win this book.

[kazoulis]

I scrapbook because I love pretty paper of course! and it's a way to create something I actually like and don't feel inferior to someone (well, the more I scrapbook the more confident I am)

[Cresta Woodruff]

I scrapbook to document the happenings of life, to have a creative outlet, and to have an excuse to buy all of the fabulous papers and embellishments (and tools) that I just can't seem to live without! =)

[Lana Day]

I scrapbook to keep my memories, i love reading everyone's journaling on their scrapbook pages.

[Liz Rempel]

I scrapbook for me, to leave a legacy that I was here. I scrapbook for my son, so he knows that from the moment he took his first breath, he was loved more than anything in this world. I scrapbook for my grandchildren, hopefully allowing them to remember times and places we have been together long after I am gone. I scrapbook for my husband, to record our journey together. I scrapbook for my friends, this is the link that holds us together, four people who in a normal everyday world have nothing in commmon but have become friends who mean more to me than they will ever know. I scrapbook to laugh, to cry, to remember, to be silly, to be confident, to be afraid. My life is in those pages.

[Jena Baker]

I scrapbook because I want to document the stories of my family life which I cherish and I sincerely hope will be appreciated by generations to come.

[Miriam Prantner]

I scrapbook to remember, I scrapbook as a gift for my daughters, and I scrapbook for me, because I love it, and because I have stories to tell.

[Jen Newport]

I scrapbook to relive all of my cherished memories throughout my life. I also love to share them with others! It's just a great hobby!

[Janet MacKay]

I scrapbook as a way to have a creative outlet that requires both words, pictures and feelings. I also want to focus on the small moments that are truly the special times of our lives.

[Cindy]

It's a most welcome creative outlet for me; an escape and I love it!

[Brenda B]

Courtney, this is a generous giveaway. Whoo, hoo, I hope I can add these books to my library! So, why do I scrapbook? Scrapbooking is first and foremost, a place for me to record family history. I record everything from the mundane to the phenomenal. It is also a creative and artistic outlet. I love the papers and the challenge of coming up with a new layout. Scrapbooking has also been a kind of therapy when faced with a difficult challenge. Putting everything down on paper really helps to work through some of those challenging moments.

[Penny Douphinett]

I scrapbook to remember all the small events that make up my family's lives. It is a creative outlet as well, but the satisfaction comes from reliving the memories.

Thanks for the chance to win.

[Janet]

I scrapbook because I want to! It makes me feel happy and adds a certain satisfaction to my life it makes me feel complete!