Books 7 & 8 Covers

Posted bySusan K. MarlowPosted inPhoto Fridays

Okay, this was supposed to be a Photo Friday post, but I hit the wrong button. Instead of deleting it and confusing everybody, I have decided to let it stand. So, pretend this is FRIDAY. LOL

I have the covers for Circle C Adventures Books 7 and 8 at last. Kregel made a big decision last month and decided to switch around release dates, split the original book into TWO BOOKS, and we had to decide which stories would be in each book. (And here I thought it was all said and done.) Why would they do that? Well, read on, my friends . . .

The original short-story collection had 9 stories in it, 5 stories being new to most readers. The other 4 were completely revised and updated (and expanded somewhat) from the stories in the 10-year-old book Circle C short-story book that never did very well, being an orphan book and all.

Anyway, the nine stories ended up making the book much too expensive to include in the Circle C Adventures since the page count was very high! So, they decided to do something similar to what we did in the Milestones books: OTHER Tales from the Circle C Ranch, and MORE Tales from the Circle C Ranch. Instead of spreading myself too thin, all of the stories in the two new books are within a year of the Circle C Adventures timeline. I’m sure many blog fans have read some of these “new” stories, but I don’t have that many followers, so hundreds/thousands of regular readers have read none of them, so this will be fun collections for them.

So, the nine stories were chopped in half, and since they now wanted 6 stories in EACH book, I had to find more stories. They want the stories to stay around 35,000 words each, and sadly, some of my stories are long and so now I have to SLICE AND DICE. A very hard assignment. I have to cut 7,000 words from book 8. With God’s help, I have less than 500 words left to cut out, but understand that I have already chopped this manuscript down and am not sure where I will find 496 words to cut AGAIN.

The fun thing about these two books are the illustrations! Anyway, here are the stories in each book. If you click the link on “Orphan Calf” and “Roping Gone Wrong” you can read excerpts and see those illustrations.

OTHER Tales (January 2025)

  • Orphan Calf >
  • Andi’s Christmas Ball
  • Race to the Finish Line
  • Snake in a Pail
  • Virginia’s Riding Lesson
  • Tarantula Trouble

MORE Tales (Spring 2025)

  • Roping Gone Wrong >
  • Andi’s Icy Encounter
  • A Close Call
  • Summer on the Sound
  • The Lost Mine
  • Andi’s New Year’s Gala

Published by Susan K. Marlow

I'm the author of the Circle C and Goldtown Adventures series. I blog as "Andi Carter," the main character in the Circle C series. She lives on a huge cattle ranch in 1880s California. These are her adventures.

20 thoughts on “Books 7 & 8 Covers”

  2. I just wanted to say how sorry I am about Ms. Coleen. I want you to know that I’m praying for you. I am hoping that you find joy and hope over the next few days. I hope it’s alright if I pray for you right now.

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    1. Oh, mostly because I did not want to get involved in a theological discussion with a young commentator who expressed a different belief regarding my friend’s destination. It seemed prudent to reply once and then to move on. And clearly, you guys can easily find a way to comment in other places. 👍😉

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  5. Mrs. M,

    I am so sorry about the loss of your dear friend and writing contest judge. At the same time, I rejoice to know that she is with the Lord. I pray that you will find comfort and joy, knowing that you will one day see her again.

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  11. I’m so sorry, about Ms. Colleen! I can’t imagine the sorrow your feeling right now, all I can say is that God sees you pain, and he’ll comfort you through it ALWAYS! Ms. Colleen is probably dancing around in heaven right now praising the good Lord❤️

    Praying for you and Ms. Colleen’s family 🙏❤️

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  13. Dear Mrs. M , I would like to inform you that I am the Seventh Day Adventist that you responded to in the last post. I want you to know that I’m so very sorry that your dear friend has passed away, and that I’m sorry for not respecting your sadness. I also want you to know that I have been praying for yo and her family. I hope that I have not offended you in any way, and if I have I’m truly very sorry. I love you!!

    Here are some bible verses:

    Psalm 2:4 : ”Even though I walk through the darkest valley , I will fear no evil , for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

    1 Peter 5:7 : ”Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

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    1. That is very sweet of you and I appreciate it, my friend! I usually LOVE debate and conversation about spiritual things, as it’s so stimulating to talk about God’s Word, but I just felt this blog was not the appropriate place to engage, and that is the reason I closed the comments. I see you “found” me, and I’m glad you did. Thank you for the lovely Bible verses. God bless you!

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