If at first you don’t succeed. . .
Last year, my daughter brought me this lovely puzzle from her visit to Monet’s house and gardens. I love puzzles, and while I could tell from the picture it would…
Assorted & Sundry
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Writing for an Audience of One
“Would you write this book if you knew you were writing it only for me?” That’s the question I heard—twice—back in 2002 at the outset of my writing journey. I’d…
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How to Avoid Books Written by AI
I really appreciate AI for some things! For example, search engines are phenomenally helpful these days. However, since “generative AI” writing tools like ChatGPT and Claude became available, the number…
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Time Away
Dear friends, I’ve remained active on this blog, so maybe most of you haven’t noticed, but I took a long hiatus from social media. At first, it wasn’t intentional. I…
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The Blessing of Daughters
For the last few years since we moved to Missouri, my daughters, Tobi and Tavia, have given me the gift of their time with a day of antique-ing and a…
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Join the Posse Party
Every year during the first week of August I host a big bookish bash in my Facebook group – The Posse. It’s hard for me to believe, but this week…
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Tour Highlight: Returning to Painswick
One of the highlights of the recent group tour I hosted in June was returning to Painswick in Gloucestershire, England with a wonderful group of American, Canadian, and Dutch (Netherlands)…
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A Tale of Two Lawn Chairs
[Today I’m sharing a post that was first published here five years ago. The two lawn chairs of the title are probably nearing 90-100 years old, but they are still…
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80s Hits Turn Sweet Dreams into Sweet Reads (& a Giveaway!)
I love hosting a group of Dallas/Fort Worth writers in my home! We meet monthly during the school year to share a meal, then I give a “mini-lesson” on the…
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An Unexpected Blessing (though my cats might disagree)
Hi friends, Happy Wednesday! Thanks for popping by the blog and spending a little of your time with me. Most people associate us as “dog people.” We’ve had dogs, actually…
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The Story Behind the Story: Connecting with Lynne Tolley…and Jack Daniel’s Favorite Novel
I had one of those moments recently that I’ll remember for a long time. I was in Lynchburg, Tennessee, speaking at the Moore County Historical Society—a town that, if you’ve…
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An Interview with Julie Klassen | Guest Post by Ellis van Iersel
In June, I – a Dutch reader – had the privilege to travel with Julie Klassen – an American author – to England with a bunch of Americans (and two…