Jeanna Ellsworth ~ Guest Post + GIVEAWAY

Hey everyone! Today it is my pleasure to have Jeanna Ellsworth on my blog! She has just recently published her first book, Mr. Darcy's Promise, and is giving-away a copy to one lucky person! So, be sure to read all the way down to the end!  

Without further ado, may I present Ms Jeanna Ellsworth!

A Single Woman in Possession of a Small Fortune MUST be in Want of a Husband

“NEXT TO BEING MARRIED, A GIRL LIKES TO BE CROSSED IN LOVE NOW AND THEN. IT IS SOMETHING TO THINK OF, AND IT GIVES HER A SORT OF DISTINCTION AMONG HER COMPANIONS.” – Mr. Bennet

I am literally laughing as I prepare for this blog post, as the title came to me in the middle of the night. I find myself somewhat inspired to discuss such things as love, marriage, and finance and the combination of the three. I have been divorced now for nearly three years and it has been the best three years of my life. During that time I have bought my own house, put it up for rent, moved cross country from Oregon to Salt Lake City, found the best job I’ve ever had as a Neurological ICU nurse, fallen in love over 50 times (more on that later), written three JAFF books, bought another house on a 1 acre lot and started a flock of 20 chickens, overhauled me and my daughter’s rabbitry which will hold about 30 rabbits, started a small self-publishing company including maintaining a website and blog (www.HeyLadyPublications.com), self-published my first book, Mr. Darcy’s Promise, and started an exercise routine and have lost 30 lbs. I’m breathless just letting my fingers type it.

I am a single divorced mother dependent on her single source of income as being a nurse. When census is low, I get put on call, when census is high, I pick up shifts. Like many people, I have a car payment, two house payments, random expenses that come up, and a bit of credit card debt.

But somewhere in the back of people’s mind, there is a universal truth acknowledged that a single woman in possession of a small fortune MUST be in want of a husband. Why this is, I do not know. I seem to be doing just fine without a man. But does that mean that I am avoiding love? As Mr. Bennet says, “Girls like to be crossed in love now and then.” He says it gives some “sort of distinction among her companions.” Distinction? I find that humorous. Nevertheless, I thought I would investigate this universally acknowledged truth. So I decided that I would try it; I would let myself fall in love. I would let it happen whenever, and as often, as possible. I would stay up late with the man and lose sleep over him. I decided that I would imagine him in every facet of my life. I decided that I could daydream about him kissing me when I was not with him. I would read his love declarations over and over again. I decided that I needed a man. But just not any man. I need a Mr. Darcy. So with this new found decision to date a Mr. Darcy, I, for the first time in many years, started evaluating the kind of man that I could get crossed in love with.

I made a mental list of the musts. Must be a gentleman. Must be trustworthy. Must be deeply passionate. Must look past my faults. Must respect me and I must respect him. But as I started the list, I also unknowingly realized I was also making a list of deficits that would be acceptable. It would be ok if he was quiet, brutally honest – for I appreciate honesty, fumbled socially, and was madly and obsessively in love with me but didn’t quite know how to show it. My gentleman love match could be imperfect. In fact, I wanted him to be imperfect. But as I made this list of “musts” and “must not’s” I was enlightened with what I saw glaring at me on the page. I had already found my man I could be crossed in love with. I had found that imperfect man who was passionate and could look past my faults. In fact, I realized, since January 2012 and April 2012 I had fallen in love with him over 50 times! I had done everything I said I would do. I stayed up late with him, lost sleep over him, I imagined him in every facet of my life, and I had imagined him kissing me over and over again. I had a love match with Mr. Darcy in every JAFF book I found and was consumed by.

Now, one might ask how in the world, with the things I was doing, could I read 50 books in 4 months? I’d say I rather fancied myself crossed in love. Out of that saturated state of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth tales, I couldn’t stop thinking about the two of them. I had plots coming in every moment of my life both asleep and awake. So I started writing. And I wrote and wrote and wrote. That is where Mr. Darcy’s Promise came out of. I found that I purposely wrote him to be all of those things I made on my list. Most of all, he was not perfect. My Mr. Darcy in Mr. Darcy’s Promise is –– although kind, trustworthy, considerate, generous, and deeply passionate –– was also a little bumbleheaded, anxious to the point of nausea, and so unsure of himself that he was afraid to express his love for Elizabeth until he could contain that love no longer.

So most of my friends, family, neighbors, and church goers, all have at some point asked if I am dating someone. A few have expressed their deep desire for me to find a man. A few have made it their quest to set me up with eligible bachelors. But in all honesty? I have a man. A man who I get to hear say all the right things at all the right times. A man who will do everything I could possibly want him to do. A man who at the touch of a keyboard, could be exactly what I am looking for. I have fallen in love with my Mr. Darcy, from Mr. Darcy’s Promise. What a love story it is too!

For more on Mr. Darcy’s Promise, just released in July, you can read about it on my website, http://www.heyladypublications.com/mr-darcys-promise.html. I am pleased to allow any and all of you to use and abuse the man of my dreams and fall in love with him too. Yummy breeches and all. I do promise a sexy Mr. Darcy in a wet shirt. I do promise a mud fight. I do promise tender words and tender touches, but most of all, I promise that you too will fall in love with my Mr. Darcy in Mr. Darcy’s Promise. I will be giving away either a paperback or an ebook of my book, so enter the Rafflecopter below and leave a comment for a chance to win! This giveaway is open Internationally. Last day to enter is August 12, 2013. Good luck! 

And when it comes to the truth universally acknowledged that a single woman in possession of a small fortune MUST be in want of a husband, well, I will settle for the imperfect man on my laptop and kindle but that doesn’t mean that if you show up at my door in breeches and sexy knee high boots that I wouldn’t let you in.

Jeanna Ellsworth

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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**Remember, you must fill out the Rafflecopter form above to enter the giveaway. The winner will have 72 hours to respond to my email. If I don't receive a response a new winner will be picked. Thanks!**