As you may have heard, we are doing a series here on Inspired by Life...and Fiction, called "10 Things You Might Not Know About Me." Today is my turn. Here are 10 things you may not (yet) know about me: I live in St. Paul now, but I am originally from Chicago. Most of my relatives moved away decades ago, but at every family wedding, the Blues Brother's song “Sweet Home, Chicago” still fills … [Read more...]

A lot of people have been posting their “word of the year” online, or asking people to finish the phrase: This is the year I___________.  The first phrase that came to my mind was not very profound or spiritual, I’m afraid. It was: “2017…The year I get off my can.” But that didn’t sound very ladylike, so next I came up with, “The year I take a stand.” A stand up desk, that is…  Because I sit … [Read more...]

Boom! Pop! The house shook and the lights went out. “What's going on…?” a teenager called in disbelief. The house was plunged into darkness. No more Christmas lights twinkling at the window, or a brightly lit tree. No more Christmas movie on television or Bing Crosby crooning over the speakers. Computers waned on battery power and cell phones--already at low battery near day’s end--were … [Read more...]

Two other Inspired by Life and Fiction Authors have posted photo-tours (here and here) of their festively decorated houses that are beautiful and deserve to be printed in glossy magazines. In case that makes you feel inadequate, here are a few photos from my house to make you feel better. I don't have a Martha Stewart bone in my body. Zero knack for decorating. Plus, I'm on deadline, so... I'm … [Read more...]

My new book in my first-ever series launches next week, and in its honor, Bethany House Publishers has created a dedicated mini-site for the series, at TalesFromIvyHill.com. I’m excited. The website offers: a color map of the village a detailed character list (which readers often request) photos of village buildings videos (me introducing the series, and on location in “Ivy … [Read more...]