Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

Moving Day

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Today is the day I’ve been anticipating for the past eight months, the day we move into our new home in Michigan. It’s the end of a journey but also the beginning of a new one. My husband Ken and I started planning his retirement last fall as we vacationed in Michigan where he grew up—and where we met and fell in love.  As we cycled along one of our favorite bicycle trails near the … [Read more...]

When We Trip and Fall Flat On Our Faces

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Confession: I have a tendency to trip and fall. Yes, if anyone in my family is going to trip over a step or crack or stray rock, it's usually me. In fact, I did just that last weekend at a wedding. After the ceremony and pictures, I pushed open the heavy wooden door of a beautiful old chapel. I lifted my face to bask in the bright spring sunshine, the warm breeze, and the waft of blooming … [Read more...]

A Stitch in Time

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I am an avid cross-stitcher. When I can find time, that is. I love creating art with needle and thread. My best friend in high school is the one who got me hooked. She and I both worked in a little California tourist town called Solvang one summer, and we found part-time jobs in needlework stores. I might have been forced to wear a peasant blouse and a red Danish corset covered in flowers, but I … [Read more...]

Reflections on an Empty Page (Guest blogger Janice Thompson)

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As I sit with pen in hand, ready to face the stark, white reality of the empty page, I find myself consumed with thoughts that pull me away from my task. “Am I writing out of passion?” I wonder, “or am I writing to fill a need?” The question brings instantaneous guilt. It also sends my mind off in a thousand different directions. I can’t help but think of Laura Ingalls Wilder in her prairie … [Read more...]

If this Writing Gig Doesn’t Pan Out… (Guest Blogger, Regina Jennings)

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Every adult needs a skill set that makes them valuable and employable. Sure, I love being an author, but there are no guarantees in this business. If this doesn’t last I must have something to fall back on, some skill I can rely on to contribute to the family coffers. That’s why I keep my training current so I’m prepared to, in an emergency, go back to the lucrative career of...weighing … [Read more...]

Spring has sprung at our house!

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“I enjoy the spring more than the autumn now. One does, I think, as one gets older.” ― Virginia Woolf  Well, I must be getting older because this year I've officially converted from an Autumn-is-best mindset to an I-adore-Spring one! Perhaps it's because we had such a long winter this year. And I'm fickle, so it's possible when autumn does come, I'll flip-flop and change my loyalties again. … [Read more...]

Behind The Scenes of My Cover Shoot

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I’m fascinated by the process of creating covers!  I'm especially fascinated when the cover in question happens to be one of my covers.  Last time I blogged, I introduced you to Stephanie and Leigh, Meant to Be Mine’s cover models.  Today, I'm excited to share behind-the-scenes photos taken the day of the cover shoot. Last September, when I learned that Meant to Be Mine's shoot was approaching, … [Read more...]

Purpose in Everything We Do

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I have been immensely blessed in life. I grew up in a Christian home with a heart to serve God from about as young as I can remember. Maybe that's why this quote from Holley Gerth's book You're Made for a God-Sized Dream resonates with me. There is a purpose for everything we do. In a day and age where so much tells us there is no meaning to life, I feel the need to repeat those words. Let … [Read more...]

Plot is a Four-Letter Word

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The word "plot," for anyone who hasn't noticed, is a four-letter word. That's more or less how I feel about it. Writers who are more analytical thrive as they work out the plot before writing their books. But I am an intuitive writer. I create from my gut. I write to discover what will happen next just as my readers read to discover what will happen next. I don't know what will occur in chapter … [Read more...]

Countdown to England…

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Last April I posted a blog titled, Oh to be in England now that April’s there… (The opening line of the Robert Browning poem). In the post, I lamented how I longed to return to England. Now, a year later, I am excited to say I am counting the days until I take that trip, to research future books and enjoy the English countryside I’ve come to love. (Below is a photo of English bluebells author … [Read more...]

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