Yielding the Power of the Pen

A neat thing happened to me today. A reporter for the local paper interviewed me. She is going to write an article about me and my books. As we talked, she wrote, and I admit the curiosity of what she was writing got to me. I mean, I'm usually the one with pen in hand, taking notes. A couple of times she read back to me what she was writing, so I had some idea where she was going with the article. I'm nervous, wondering if anything I said will sound stupid when I see it in print. Will she make me sound interesting, boring, funny, weird? And how will people who read the article respond to it? Of course, I'm hoping some will be inspired to buy the books and read them, because of, or in spite of, what they read about me.

The article will come out next week or the following week. I'm anxiously anticipating the finished result, even though it was hard to yield the power of the pen to someone else.

Message of Hope

We all know someone who is facing serious illness or loss. It is the time of year when I tend to think of my own losses. My mom, who was a tremendous inspiration to me, passed away shortly after Halloween almost five years ago. Although I know she is in heaven, my heart aches with grief sometimes because she is gone.

The first book in the Legacy of Courage series is called, Courage to Hope. It is the story of Cara, a young widow who has suffered many losses. Her grandmother taught her about the Lord, but Cara made a bad marriage choice. After her grandmother died, Cara lost what little faith had been birthed in her heart. Now she is a widow and struggling to hold onto her farm. She has little hope for her future. I think we all know someone like that. They are facing something that is far more difficult than they can handle on their own. Like Cara, they don't have any hope that tomorrow will be better. Through the kindness of a hired hand, Cara finds the courage to hope in the goodness of God.


It is my prayer that the book will ignite a spark of hope in the hearts of those who read it. If the book has touched your heart, please pass it along to someone who needs a message of hope.

A Book for Cara

I had a call from the store where they sold some books this summer, and a customer was asking for one of the Courage books. I met her at the store and presented the book to her. She said it was her granddaughter's birthday and her granddaughter's name is Cara, spelled just like the heroine of the book. So she was buying the book for her granddaughter. I thought about asking her if she wanted me to sign the book but it felt a bit presumptious. She asked me if I would sign it, so I did. It turns out this lady and her husband went to high school with my aunt and recognized the last name. I hope her granddaughter enjoys the book. I forgot to ask what age she is.

New Beginnings

This is my first attempt at blogging. I'm not quite sure how to do it, but I've read other blogs and wanted to try one. I've been writing stories since I was in second grade, and wrote in earnest in high school. My friends would read the stories during the day, and I would go home at night and write some more. Even some of my teachers enjoyed my stories. After high school, life got busy and I put aside my writing. In my late twenties, I was a stay-at-home mom with two young children and had time on my hands. I began to write again. Two years ago, a good friend read some of my stories and liked them. She wanted to get copies for her friends and family. So I checked into costs of self-publishing. I chose a local printer who prints and binds the books. They are not very fancy, but the people who have bought them like the stories. I have a contemporary series about a college student, a contemporary novel, and a historical series. So far, the historical series is the most popular.