Merry Christmas 2017

Merry Christmas from our hearth to yours!

The Sleimans have had an exciting and busy year, starting with Christi Sleiman's college graduation at the top of her mechanical engineering program in May, followed in July by her engagement to Adam Giedd. She first met Adam when they were co-mission leaders on a trip to Israel, and they grew even closer as they worked as brother/sister dorm head resident advisors. They will be married in January! This year Adam Giedd is finishing up his Master's degree in education at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa while Christi works as a hall director for the school. Next year, they're excited to see where God will lead them, very possibly to an engineering job for Christi.

Jonny Sleiman is a junior marketing major and president of his Enactus business club at Oral Roberts University. He also works part-time in a marketing position for the school. Despite a football induced broken finger requiring surgery, he's having a great year and looking forward to a promising future in the business field.

Adam Sleiman (not to be confused with Adam Giedd above) has been focusing on soccer and piano this year. Over the summer he traveled to Guatemala on a missionary trip with Adventures in Missions. He's still learning Arabic and Spanish at the Global Studies program at Tallwood High School.

Dina Sleiman released another novel this year, Dare from Deep Within, which follows the characters from her previous Dance from Deep Within as they help a young Muslim woman escape her abusive family. Dina also continues to work as a writer for Operation Blessing and an administrator at Acts 2 Church.

Dani Sleiman has also experienced some big changes this year. Recently, he officially resigned from the Christian Broadcasting Network, where he happily served for over twenty years, and he is stepping out as a freelance contractor in the computer field. His big project is a media related app that he hopes to see launched fully some time soon.

Blessings to you and yours. We hope you have a great year filled with love, peace, and joy.

The Sleiman Family

The Deep Within Saga (FINALLY) Continues!

Hi, friends. If you dig way back in your memories, you might recall my contemporary novel, Dance from Deep Within. And if you happened to actually read this novel, you might remember that there was a teaser for book 2 in the back.

Fast-forward four years, and where is book 2? Well, that's a bit of a saga itself. I actually wrote book 2 shortly after book 1 released in late 2013. I even made a verbal agreement with WhiteFire to publish book 2. But, around that same time, I also had the idea for my YA Valiant Hearts series. And when Bethany House Publishers purchased that series, I had a strict exclusivity clause that didn't allow me to publish Dare from Deep Within during the duration of that contract. These things happen in the publishing world...no hard feelings.

Except that a number of my readers were seriously disappointed not to get the next installment of the Deep Within series in a timely manner. So I'm happy to announce that the moment has nearly arrived. Next week, exactly four years after the release of book 1, Dare from Deep Within will finally release!!!

And I have to say, I love this series, probably more than any of my other books. I love the strong sisterhood bond and the theme of intimacy with Christ and searching for truth from deep within found in book 1, along with the romance, humor, and drama that ensues. In book 2, the saga continues as the gang must work together to save an abused friend, with all the humor, romance, and spiritual depth that you might expect from the sequel in this series, plus a greater sense of suspense and urgency as they face the darker, terror-ridden side of Islam. The book examines risks and taking chances for what we truly believe.

I hope you didn't give up on me after so many years, and that you're still excited to read the next installment. And if you haven't picked up the Deep Within series yet, I invite you to start with book 1!

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Book 1 - Dance from Deep Within

Despite her conservative Muslim heritage, Layla Al-Rai longs for a chance to earn her degree in engineering and perhaps even...dare she dream...to choose her own husband. But young women from her background rarely enjoy such freedoms. When she finally talks her parents into letting her attend college, she is drawn to fellow twenty-something students, Allie and Rain, over a class project. 

Allie, the blonde ballerina, faces her own struggles as she deals with an ex-fiancé and a church she had hoped to leave behind. Rain, the bi-racial hippie chick, longs for something to believe in, but her questioning could cost her the love of her life. 

When Layla's childhood sweetheart reenters her world, it seems her dreams might become real. Until everything falls apart. When she meets truth face to face, will she find the courage to accept it even if it requires the ultimate sacrifice?

Order now

Book 2 - Dare from Deep Within

Three young women from varying backgrounds risk everything to help a friend escape her abusive family. Still at odds with her own Muslim parents, Layla faces unexpected challenges when her childhood companion shows up on her doorstep. 

As Fatima risks everything for freedom, her desperate circumstances draw a new circle of friends who will be forever changed by her plight. Layla, the Muslim-background believer, turns to a forbidden boyfriend for the guidance both to protect Fatima and to find her identity apart from her parents and her former culture. Rain, the bi-racial hippie chick, secrets Fatima away from her violent family, but as the experience draws her closer to Christ, Rain's own relationship with her significant other, James, will suffer the consequences. Sarah, an ultra-conservative Christian on the surface, is torn between a desire to help Fatima and a need to conceal her shameful double life and dangerous habits from her older sister Allie. 

As they struggle to safely guide this courageous young woman through a maze of intrigue and terrorism, all will be forced to ask what they are willing to risk for love, for each other, and for God.

Order now

Ebook Sale! Don't Miss Out!

Right now Dauntless is available for only $.99 on Amazon, and Chivalrous and Courageous are only $2.99 each. Don't miss out on this great sale, and please spread the word.

Diversity Between the Pages!

Hi Friends, I really enjoyed doing this unique interview about Dance from Deep Within over at "Diversity Between the Pages." Hop on over and check it out!

WhiteFire Scavenger Hunt Stop #6

Welcome to the WhiteFire Publishing Scavenger Hunt!

If you’ve just discovered the hunt, be sure to go back to stop #1 and collect all the clues in order. Once you have them all, you’ll have uncovered a secret message. Turn that in at the final stop for a chance to win one of THREE amazing prize packages!

• The Hunt begins at Roseanna White’s site
• Take your time! You have all weekend to complete the Hunt—entries will be counted until Monday June 26—so have fun reading all the posts along the way and getting to know each author
• Lots of extra prizes! Many of the authors are featuring unique giveaways as well, for even more chances to win!
• Submit your entry for the grand prizes back at Roseanna White’s blog.

 A Muslim, a hippie, and a Christian walk into a coffee shop... 

No, it's not the start of a questionable joke, it's the fascinating premise for my Deep Within Series with WhiteFire Publishing. It's hard for an author to choose a favorite book, kind of like choosing a favorite child, but I do believe my Deep Within books are the the most life-changing books I've written. These books are filled with romance, humor, and even suspense as the heroines search together for true meaning in their lives. I invite you to take this journey of discovery, starting with Dance from Deep Within. 

book 1 available now

Despite her conservative Muslim heritage, Layla Al-Rai longs for a chance to earn her degree in engineering and perhaps even...dare she dream...to choose her own husband. But young women from her background rarely enjoy such freedoms. When she finally talks her parents into letting her attend college, she is drawn to fellow twenty-something students, Allie and Rain, over a class project. 

Allie, the blonde ballerina, faces her own struggles as she deals with an ex-fiancé and a church she had hoped to leave behind. Rain, the bi-racial hippie chick, longs for something to believe in, but her questioning could cost her the love of her life. 

When Layla's childhood sweetheart reenters her world, it seems her dreams might become real. Until everything falls apart. When she meets truth face to face, will she find the courage to accept it even if it requires the ultimate sacrifice?

Also look for the equally compelling book 2 in the series, Dare from Deep Within, coming in November 2017.

book 2 coming November 2017

For those of you who read book 1, that's not Allie in the top left corner; it's her sister Sarah. And that's Fatima, Layla's abused Saudi friend, on the beach. The whole gang will come back together to help save Fatima in a suspense and romance filled adventure that's sure to tug at your heart and challenge your thinking. Be sure to keep an eye out for it!

Now back to the Scavenger Hunt

Here’s the Stop #6 Scoop:

You can order my book at amazon, barnesandnoble, or cbd.

Clue to Write Down: FIND

The Next Stop on the Loop, #7: Gail Kittleson

Need the full list of stops?

Roseanna M. White

April McGowan

Cara Luecht

Christine Lindsay

Debra Marvin

Dina Sleiman

Gail Kittleson

Joy Palmer

June Foster

Melody Carlson (hosted)

Nelson Hannah

Rachelle Rea Cobb

Sara Goff

Susie Finkbeiner

Susanne Dietze

Suzie Johnson

All finished? Be sure to Submit Your Entries by midnight on June 26th. Best Wishes!

Dusting off an Old Manuscript

When I teach writing classes, I always talk about how important it is to get those ideas out of your head and down on the paper. Lump of clay writing, I call it—or in less delicate terms, word vomit! In the winter of 2013-2014 I word vomited the sequel to Dance from Deep Within onto my computer while I awaited the decision on my Valiant Hearts Series from Bethany House Publishers. As many of you know, I landed that deal, and the next two years were a blur of writing, editing, and marketing Dauntless, Chivalrous, and Courageous.

But now those books are out on the market, and for the last year I’ve been launching a new career of public relations writing for the non-profit humanitarian organization, Operation Blessing. I haven’t had much time for writing anything new. You see where this is going, right? While I didn’t have time for writing something new, I did have time to edit and complete my 95% finished first draft.

So I dusted off (okay, I found and opened the old Microsoft Word file of) Dare from Deep Within and set to work. I still had some challenges to face since I had shifted directions somewhere in the middle and needed to clean up my characterization and motivation. The wording needed a good edit, and I had to write the ending. However, just a few months later, in my spare time, I’ve managed to complete a very solid draft of the novel. WhiteFire, who published the first book in the series, has agreed to release book 2 sometime in 2017!

It turns out what I teach my students is true. It’s always worth getting those ideas down on paper, even if they grow dusty on the shelf. How about you? Have you ever dusted off an old manuscript? What were the results?

Dance from Deep Within is Available on Amazon now.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from the Sleimans. 2016 has been a pretty good year for us. My husband, Dani, is still working at the Christian Broadcasting Network. Adam (14) has branched out, and in addition to music, gymnastics, and online video gaming, he has been enjoying soccer and his global studies high school program. Christi (22) is finishing up her B.S. in engineering while working as a head resident advisor, and still considering options like grad school, peace corp or finding a job for next year. Jonny (19) is doing great in his business undergrad program, he's the vice president of his award-winning Enactus business club, and still fitting in a lot of surfing and other outdoor activities. Christi and Adam both plan to go on short term missionary trips during summer 2017.

For me the year brought my first "real" job. I'm enjoying my work writing for the humanitarian organization, Operation Blessing. In addition to writing social media posts, articles, webpages, and helping the team with editing and research,  I also wrote a nonfiction book for them called 10 Ways to Live Your Faith, which will hopefully be available sometime soon. My co-workers are amazing and tons of fun! This year also brought my first major published award--the Carol for young adult fiction. And I'm still chipping away at my novel writing and finding a new groove with that as a working woman.

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a wonderful, blessed New Year!