Since Jane Austen was born in December (December 16, 1775), my local chapter of the Jane Austen Society of North American (Minnesota) celebrates with an annual Christmas party at which we honor her memory on or near her birthday. We always have a toast to Jane, with words taken from something her brother Henry wrote after Jane’s death. He describes her as: [having] the most lively … [Read more...]

I recently had the privilege of attending the Christy Awards in Nashville, TN. The Christy Awards honor excellence in Christian Fiction and were named after Catherine Marshall’s classic book, Christy. (Have you read it or seen the television series?) My recent book, Shadows of Swanford Abbey was a finalist in the Historical Romance category. I have won in the past, but it has been several … [Read more...]

Hello friends. Julie Klassen here. Today, I am delighted to have author Brenda Cox share with us about her new book, Fashionable Goodness: Christianity in Jane Austen’s England. I met Brenda after one of her informative talks at a meeting of the Jane Austen Society of North America. Brenda has been researching and speaking about this topic for years and I'm so glad that her book is now available. … [Read more...]

Hello friends. Please forgive the brief post today. I’m down to one week to get a draft of my December 2023 release to my Beta readers on November 1st, so I’m scrambling here! (I’m sorry if you thought the title of this post related to the game Scramble, which I LOVE. I don’t get to play often but do enjoy a few rounds of Words with Friends while I eat my lunch. 😊) For now, I thought I’d share … [Read more...]

Hello friends. I hope you are enjoying October so far. I've been head-down busy writing lately but I am taking daily walks to enjoy the beautifully colorful foliage here in the northern US. The leaves are so pretty that I brought some home with me. While I walk, I love to listen to audiobooks. I'm currently listening to a book by debut novelist Sara Brunsvold called The Extraordinary … [Read more...]