​How Writing This Book Kept Me Sane by Darlene Foster

​
How Writing This Book Kept Me Sane
By Darlene Foster
The latest adventure in the Amanda Travels series, Amanda on The Danube – The Sounds of Music was released October 1, 2016. In this book, Amanda Ross finds herself on an elegant riverboat with her bestie, Leah, cruising down the beautiful Danube, passing medieval castles, luscious green valleys and charming villages. When she is entrusted with a valuable violin by a young, homeless musician during a stop in Germany, a mean boy immediately attempts to take it from her. Back on their cruise, Amanda struggles to keep the precious violin safe for the poor prodigy. Along the way, she encounters a mysterious monk, a Santa Claus look-alike, and the same nasty boy. Follow Amanda down the Danube, through Germany, Austria and Hungary, as she enjoys the enchanting sounds of music everywhere she goes. She remains on the lookout, wondering just who she can trust.

A question I am often asked is where I get ideas for my books.  In this case, I was fortunate to go on a fabulous river cruise down the Danube with my hubby and some good friends four years ago. We had a fabulous time and everywhere we visited I thought, Amanda would love this place. I took notes and tons of pictures. For a writer, your characters are always on your mind and you never really take a holiday from writing. I had just published Amanda in England and was working on Amanda in Alberta at the time.

When I eventually started to write Amanda on the Danube, I was in the midst of a huge transition in my life. I had just retired from my day job after 48 years of working. Then my husband and I sold, gave away and threw out seventy-five percent of our belongings, packed the rest and moved to Spain to start a new life. I couldn´t see how I would manage to get any writing time in and I was sure I had forgotten most of my trip. But I managed to sneak in some writing whenever I had a few spare minutes, as writers do. Thankfully I had my photographs and journal entries to remind myself of the exciting places I wanted to write about. The rest of the adventure just came to me as I wrote.
Somehow, and I´m still not sure how, I completed Amanda on the Danube, three years after my trip. I honestly feel that writing the story helped relieve the stress of moving and reconstructing my life. I guess I can thank Amanda for keeping me sane. 
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I hope everyone enjoys travelling with Amanda. This is what mother/daughter reader had to say:
"A mysterious travel adventure with a brave, inquisitive, compassionate heroine. This is a fast-paced, fun read! Amanda will take you on a wonderful, visual, descriptive adventure." —PJ Sarah Collins, author, Sam & Nate and Elena Collins
 
Social Media links
Buy the book https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Danube-Sounds-Darlene-Foster/dp/1771681020/
Amazon author page https://www.amazon.com/DarleneFoster/e/B003XGQPHA/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1
Goodreads author page
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3156908.Darlene_Foster
Website  http://www.darlenefoster.ca
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/DarleneFosterWriter/
Twitter https://twitter.com/supermegawoman

BLURB: Twelve year old Amanda Ross finds herself on an elegant riverboat with her bestie, Leah, cruising down the beautiful Danube, passing medieval castles, luscious green valleys and charming villages. When she is entrusted with a valuable violin by a young, homeless musician during a stop in Germany, a mean boy immediately tries to take it from her. Back on their cruise, Amanda struggles to keep the precious violin safe for the poor prodigy. Along the way, she meets a mysterious monk, a Santa Claus look-alike, and the same nasty boy. Follow Amanda down the Danube, through Germany, Austria and Hungary, as she enjoys the enchanting sounds of music everywhere she goes. She remains on the lookout though, wondering just who she can trust.

AUTHOR: Brought up on a ranch in southern Alberta, Darlene Foster dreamt of writing, travelling the world and meeting interesting people. She also believes everyone is capable of making their dreams come true. It’s no surprise that she’s now the award-winning author of a children's adventure series about a travelling twelve year-old girl. A world traveller herself, Darlene spends her time in Vancouver, Canada and Costa Blanca, in Spain.

​PRAISE FOR AMANDA ON THE DANUBE “A charming and fast-paced story that will delight its young audience as Amanda and Leah travel along the historic Danube River to deliver a very unique and mysterious violin." ~ Suzanne de Montigny, Award-winning author, Shadow of the Unicorn: The Legacy “This fast-paced mystery will keep readers guessing until the very last chapter.” ~ Jan L. Coates, Children’s Author, Finalist Governor General’s Literary Awards "A mysterious violin case, two boys and other intriguing characters among ancient castles make this a page turning adventure for young readers.” ~ Margriet Ruurs, Author of My Librarian is a Camel "A mysterious travel adventure with a brave, inquisitive, compassionate heroine. This is a fast-paced, fun read! Amanda will take you on a wonderful, visual, descriptive adventure." ~ PJ Sarah Collins, Author, and Elena Collins, aged 11

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