Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

My Holy Week Focus: Sifting

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Every Christmas and Easter I look for a small moment of focus within the familiar stories. It helps me enter more fully into the holiness of these celebrations of Jesus in both his God-ness and his humanness. This year, I was reading a plan on the Bible app when Luke 22:31-33 grabbed me in a new way: Jesus says, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; … [Read more...]

Three “Last” Things

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What are your three "last" things? The last sweet you baked.The last book you read. The last picture you took (and if you know plants, please let me know what the name of this plant is!) I last baked this delicious Keto "Samoa" cookie bar. You might have eaten a Girl Scout Samoa cookie? Well this is the low carb gluten free version of that, and it...is...fabulous! I've been eying this … [Read more...]

Spring Fever

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Everyone I know has Spring Fever, including me. The sun is shining, the sky is blue, and the last few piles of dirty snow are melting at last. The steady drip of snowmelt from the eaves outside my office sounds like a drumbeat, summoning me to come outside and play. The season of new beginnings is here. And it’s a new beginning for my next writing project, too. My contract schedule has me … [Read more...]

Top 2019 Reads Thus Far

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I haven't been blogging much this year. Life has a way of "happening," and I've been concentrating on lots of other things besides blog posts (including writing my next book). Some of my life's happenings have been joyous ones, as in the arrival of the newest member of my family, Adaline Jo. Here she is at a month old all dressed up for her uncle's wedding. She's in my arms (I'm her Grandy), … [Read more...]

Cover Reveal!

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My novella, Because of You, released this past fall as part of The Christmas Heirloom collection. This coming fall it will become available as a stand-alone ebook and, thus, has been given its own cover! Several months ago, I filled out a cover questionnaire for Because of You full of ideas, setting details, character inspiration, photos, and more. I knew that the design team at Bethany House … [Read more...]

2 million words & counting + Giveaway

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I've been a voracious reader from a young age. In my pre-teen and early teen years, I kept a log of all the books I read. Many months it was 30, a compilation of Nancy Drew, Mandy, Trixie Beldon, and Cherry Ames books. Is it any surprise I write mysteries and thrillers. One thing I have loved about being a parent is watching my children discover and love reading on their own. Our oldest has … [Read more...]

The Power of Christian Fiction 

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Hi friends,  So happy to be back with you this week. I spent this past weekend at the Christian Fiction Readers’ Retreat. It’s an amazing event and if you’ve never been as a writer or a reader, you definitely need to attend. It’s a day and a half of readers and writers coming together to celebrate the love of books. This year, I was a keynote speaker. I shared on the Power of … [Read more...]

In Praise of Audiobooks

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As an author, I like all the published editions: paperback, hardcover, international versions, large print, and collections. But my favorite version? Audiobooks. I know people who listen to them while sewing, exercising, or even cleaning house. I don't do any of those things (at least not often enough :)) but I love listening in the car—and not only on long trips. I don't like driving in general, … [Read more...]

Welcome to Club Deb

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I'm rerunning an oldie today, a post about my dear Club Deb friends that first ran here in 2015. Club Deb is still going strong and in fact, we got together this past weekend for an early celebration of my birthday. As we get ready to move away from Kansas, these dear friends become all the more precious to me! (Stay tuned at the end of the post for a few new photos from our most recent … [Read more...]

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