I have such great friends. Everyone has been so supportive lately as I whine about getting ready for Mount Hermon. Well, maybe “whine” isn’t the right word — more like panic. After spending the last week working on revisions to the first 20 pages of Shaken, I posted this stupid comment on Facebook: “After spending … Read More
Tell me how can I become a butterfly? You must want to fly so much that you are willing to give up being a caterpillar. Trina Paulus. I read this quote, scrawled on a whiteboard, the first time I walked into a weight watchers meeting, in October of 2007. I was full of doubts. “This … Read More
Yesterday, I got a huge gift from a friend. Leiah has a background in publishing and I had twisted her arm into reading my manuscript. I can’t imagine how nerve-wracking this must be for a friend. “Okay, you want me to critique this? Are you SURE? Will we still be friends afterwards?” So, yesterday we … Read More
Today I got to play “model” for my friend, Bethany Haile. She is an awesome photographer who has recently started her own business. Even though I grew up the daughter of a photographer, it felt very strange to have the “focus” completely on me. But it was very fun to see Bethany at her best, … Read More
Okay, so if you haven’t read Part One: Bad Boy, Good Boy? then go read it. Or this will make NO sense to you! Yesterday I wrote how my mischevious son came to accept Jesus at a young age because the idea of sin and punishment made perfect sense to him. He understood the gift … Read More
My son spent much of his first few years sitting in the time out chair. He was an active kid and often learned his lessons the hard way. Throw a block at someone? Time-out. Knock your sister over? Time-out. Throw the cellphone in the toilet? Yep, you guessed it, time-out. He learned very quickly that … Read More
I’m not sure if this is true for everyone, or just for me. But I have a spiritual “back door.” And it’s unlocked. Maybe yours is too. When people try to teach me things, whether that be in school, bible study, well-meaning advice — whatever — I have locks. “NO!” I think. “I won’t be … Read More
I’ve been working lately on getting SHAKEN ready to pitch to agents and editors at the Mount Hermon Christian Writer’s Conference in April. I have discovered that publicizing, pitching and selling your writing is so much more intense than the writing itself. There are so many hoops you have to jump through. No longer does … Read More
This is going to be a long post, but I think you’ll enjoy it. This is an shortened version of a devotion I wrote for my Mom’s group: “What my kids and husband have taught me about prayer.” Enjoy! Moms are supposed to teach their kids how to pray. It’s part of the job. But … Read More
Shaken is set in 1906 San Francisco. While working on research for the story, I stumbled over one of the most amazing characters in San Francisco history. I had no choice but to find a way to for her to cross paths with my character. Donaldina Cameron was a Presbyterian missionary working out of the … Read More