Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

Mom Life/Writer Life

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Are you familiar with the hashtags #MomLife and #WriterLife that people sometimes attach to their social media posts? Well, there are times when my #WriterLife comes to the forefront, like when I attend a conference or I have a new book releasing. And there are many other times when #MomLife comes to the forefront, like now because it's summertime at the Wade house and my college boy and high … [Read more...]

A Tour of London and Bath Bookstores & Giveaway

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Monday I returned from a trip to London -- Eric, two of our kids, and I spent 2.5 weeks there with 16 students on study abroad. It was a great time to explore -- and for me to teach in a compressed timeframe, but what I wanted to share with you today is some of the delightful bookshops we explored while we were there. There were other bookstores we explored, too. We love Waterstones, and Oxford … [Read more...]

Authors Who Inspire

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Hi friends, and happy Wednesday! Today, I was thinking about authors who have paved the way before me and my peers, who have inspired me with their words, filled me with stories of hope, and even changed me as a person—helping me to see things in a new light or to deepen my walk with the Lord. Today, I thought I’d share two authors who inspired me deeply, along with a short list of my peers who … [Read more...]

Regency-Inspired Dressmaking

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This past weekend, I attended another interesting talk hosted by the Jane Austen Society of North American (Minnesota chapter). For this month's meeting, we met in a dressmaking studio in St. Paul. The topic: The Art of Regency-Inspired Dressmaking: Tips and Tricks from a London-Trained Dressmaker. Our speaker was master seamstress, Colleen Kahn. Colleen talked about dress design and how (and … [Read more...]

Oh dear! Oh! Deer!

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We're coming up on five years living in Southeast Missouri next month and something that is equally delightful and frustrating are the deer that wander (or sometimes stampede!) through our yard daily. We live along a waterway between two wooded areas and the deer make forays from woods to woods daily. We've counted as many as 42 deer running through the yard at one time! Forty-two! That's not a … [Read more...]

The Beauty of Forgiveness

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My first book for the Christian market (my 31st published book) was The Forgiving Hour (1999). The lessons I’d learned about forgiveness—mostly the hard way—were poured into my characters in that story. I consider that novel, perhaps more than any other I’ve written, to be proof of Romans 8:28. And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who … [Read more...]

Summertime Recipes

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One of my favorite things about summer is all the wonderful salads, fruits, and tasty grilled meats we get to enjoy. I have fond memories of visiting my grandma and eating strawberries straight from the vine in her backyard. I didn't even wash them first. These days I don't cook as much as I used to, but when my daughter came to visit and asked if I would make one of our summertime favorites, I … [Read more...]

Novelettes and Novellas and Novels, Oh My! 

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Recently I started working on a short story which will soon be a giveaway to my newsletter subscribers. Except I ended up writing a novelette!  What is a novelette, you ask? And are you suddenly wondering about the definition of a novella or even a short story?  I’m here to demystify some of the forms of fiction for those of you who are readers and not writers.  A Short … [Read more...]

Doors, doors, and more doors

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When you travel, do you have a specific item you take pictures of? For me? It's doors. I love doors. Especially doors in Europe. They seem to have so much more character that the "routine" American entry way. Here are some pictures from a recent trip Joe and I took. And the last pic holds a teeny weeny clue as to what part of the world we were in. :) See if you can … [Read more...]

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