Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

What’s On Your Bookshelf? Santa, we want more books!

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Hello. Today's post is brought to you by Santa and his little elves. When in doubt about what to get people for Christmas, a gift certificate to a bookstore (brick and mortar or online) is always a good idea. With everything from how-to and cookbooks, history, religion, fiction of all kinds and those side trinkets that go with books, I can't imagine anyone turning down a good browse in the … [Read more...]

7 Christmas ornaments that have stood the test of time

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I loved Lynn's post yesterday and decided I'd share a few ornaments from our tree as well, along with a thought or two behind each one... Ornament #1 This little bride and groom has graced our family’s Christmas tree for 33 years now, just as Joe and I celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary earlier this month on December 15th. My sweet Mom gave us this ornament on Joe’s and my first … [Read more...]

Trimming the Tree

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My publishing company, Bethany House, recently asked their authors to send a picture of their favorite Christmas ornament to post on their Facebook page. I had a very difficult time deciding! Let me take you on a tour of our Christmas tree so you can see why. These beautiful crocheted ornaments came from my sister-in-law, Marion Engel, who gave them to me a few years ago when she was down-sizing. … [Read more...]

Making Books a Part of Your Holiday Traditions

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Christmas traditions. We all have traditions of one kind or another including baking, caroling, decorating, family gatherings, special outings, and more. As I was thinking of some of the Christmas traditions in my family, I realized that books have had (and continue to have) a special place in our Christmas traditions. One way I incorporated book into the holidays was by making Christmas … [Read more...]

Christmas, Christmas Time is Here

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Christmas is around the corner, and I don't know about you, but I am in serious denial that we will be having a family Christmas celebration on Sunday. It simply doesn't seem possible that we're less than three weeks from a new year. Despite my denial, it's here. Because it's the season of giving, be sure to go to the end of the post to enter a gifting of one of my books--winner's choice. For each … [Read more...]

New Book Release with a Giveaway

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  You're Gonna Love Me My latest release, You're Gonna Love Me, arrived on bookstore shelves yesterday. I'm so excited to get to introduce it to readers at last. This is the second book set in Thunder Creek, Idaho, a community that came to mean a lot to me as I wrote these novels. CBA Market had this to say about You’re Gonna Love Me: “Fearful of risk-taking, Samantha finds dating an … [Read more...]

Big and Small: Author Events For All

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Author events come in all shapes and sizes. Recently, I celebrated the release of my 12th novel at my local bookstore. It has become something of an annual November/December tradition. I was blessed with a large turnout of supportive reader-friends, writer-friends, and family who came to hear me talk about the new book, The Ladies of Ivy Cottage. I also had three special guests who talked … [Read more...]

Have Yourself a Merry (and Blessed) Little Christmas

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I put my Christmas decorations up earlier than ever this year. But that's partly because we are having an early Christmas. Our kids start arriving on Sunday and I can't wait to have this crew on my sofa again! We don't do a lot of decorating for Christmas. It's mostly limited to the living room where we all gather to open presents the first night everyone is home. But here's a little tour … [Read more...]

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