Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

White as snow!

By

"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow..." Isaiah 1:18 Our Easter Sunday morning yesterday brought the most incredibly beautiful snow! It made me think of this Scripture that holds the essence of Easter. Because He lives, we can face tomorrow (to borrow the words from an old Easter anthem.) I hope each of you had a … [Read more...]

Where Do You Find Your Recipes?

By

At best, I'm an adequate cook.  I can follow a recipe proficiently.  But I can't improvise and definitely can't create recipes of my own.  Also, I only enjoy making things like chocolate chip cookies.  Dinner preparation is not bliss for me.  Nor is eating what I cook.  I rarely eat one of my dinners and think, Yummy!  It's usually more like, Well, here's more healthy sustenance.  Since I cooked, … [Read more...]

Behind the Scenes: Tools that Help Me Remember Book Details

By

I have a book due April 15th that is squarely in the legal, romantic suspense genre. As I'm racing to finish the book, we're squarely in the middle of titling the book and series. I wrote 75K words for this book before January, and then paused to write another book, and have been back at this one since around February 15th. [Tweet "Take a step behind the scenes w/ @Cara_Putman on her next book. … [Read more...]

Scenes from Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference

By

This past week (Wednesday through Tuesday), I was in the California mountains near Santa Cruz at the wonderful Mount Hermon camp and conference center. We had beautiful warm weather and beautiful rainy weather. But mostly the well over 200 attendees had fellowship and teaching that was extraordinary. I taught six sessions over three days (about 9 hours worth) on using Scrivener. And I made a … [Read more...]

Grandma’s Feather Bed

By

Today I’m thinking about beds. Hoping for a nap? Nope. Doing research for a scene in a book, which sent me down a research rabbit hole. The articles and photos I perused about beds led to an “aha!” moment for me. Remember the  Hans Christian Andersen story, “The Princess and the Pea”? In the story, a skeptical queen decides to test a so-called princess by seeing if she can feel a pea … [Read more...]

Spring Thaw

By

The robins are back! I’m not sure where these red-bellied birds go for the winter, but I saw one for the first time this morning. A sure sign of spring. So I decided to look for other signs as I took my morning walk. Some trees now have buds. Green shoots are poking up from the cold ground along with a few brave crocuses. The ugly patches of dirty snow are nearly all melted away. And ice no … [Read more...]

The Courage of Motherhood

By

When I held my first baby in my arms, looked in his shriveled red face and felt his tiny fingers wrap around mine, I cried with joy (and probably with wacko pregnancy hormones too!). Even though I trembled with nervousness when I placed his swaddled body in the car seat for the trip home, I was excited for the new adventure that lay ahead. Five children and eighteen years later, I can look back … [Read more...]

St. Patrick – A man who loved his enemies

By

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Most of the time, when people think of March 17, they think about leprechauns, pots of gold, and wearing green to avoid getting pinched. But the origins of this holiday are much more spiritual in nature. And I researched those origins, I found myself awed by the ministry of the man who became a legend. At the end of the 4th century, Maewyn Succat was born to … [Read more...]

Monthly Archives

Blog Categories

Recent Posts

Disclosure

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the pages on this site may be "affiliate links." This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, someone will receive an affiliate commission. We are disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."