Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

Before you advance, it’s good to RETREAT…

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The first weekend in May a group of twenty writers from Minnesota (along with a few Wisconsin neighbors) got together for a weekend writers retreat. No teacher, no speaker, no agenda. Just time to write, recharge, and spend time with other writers in a beautiful setting--lake-side Camp Lebanon.   Some of us went up early on Friday to start our weekend with a tour of three historic sites … [Read more...]

Celebrating Books: Minnesota-Style

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Last Saturday night, over 800 readers, writers, and publishers came together to celebrate the year’s “best books by Minnesotans” at the 27th annual Minnesota Book Awards. More than 250 books were nominated and 32 were selected as finalists. My latest book, The Secret of Pembrooke Park, was selected as a finalist in the “Genre Fiction” category, which includes Mystery, Thrillers, … [Read more...]

Signs of Spring

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Last Thursday, April 9th, it snowed a few inches here in Minnesota. I was so thrilled, that I wrote a little song about it: "Oh, the weather outside is frightful Snow in April is NOT delightful But it’s better than 40 below So let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...." The next day, my family and I did the only logical thing—we drove to a state even colder than ours—North Dakota. It was … [Read more...]

The Most Delicious Book Club Ever

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A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of again visiting the most delicious book club ever: The Tantalizing Ladies Tea--A Christian Book Coterie. Kristine, Judy, Beverly, Phyllis, Tiffany, Sherri, and Becky have kindly invited me to join them over the last few years when I’ve had a new book come out. Up this year was The Secret of Pembrooke Park, and this time the Ladies made it even more fun by … [Read more...]

Great Expectations… Meeting Dickens

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This weekend, a friend and I went to a one-man play starring Charles Dickens’s great-great grandson. Seeing him was the main draw, I admit. I went knowing little about the play itself, except that one of my writer friends (Michelle Griep) had loved it. Two other friends had also seen it, but warned me their husbands had nodded off during the show. So, I went with no “great expectations,” but … [Read more...]

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