TEASER ANYBODY?

Here you will read a very brief/concise synopsis of each book in my current series!

Series Title: River of Hope

*Setting: Wabash, Indiana
*Period: 1920s

1. Livvie’s Song - Available NOW!
2. Ellie’s Haven - Available in Spring of 2012
3. Sofie’s Secret - Available in Winter of 2012


Livvie’s Song: Widowed woman with two small children struggles to operate the family restaurant single-handedly until a drifter with nothing but a knapsack and a harmonica in his pocket comes to town and offers to lend a hand in exchange for living in the small quarters above the restaurant.

Ellie’s Haven: Young woman on the run from her brutal stepfather after witnessing a heinous crime makes a rash decision to marry a widower with four young children, hoping the name change and secluded location will lend protection from her past.

Sofie’s Secret: Scandal surrounds a woman in her early 20s when it becomes obvious she is pregnant—and unmarried. What people do not know is that their gruff, law enforcing sheriff's son raped her—and the sheriff will stop at nothing to protect his son's name. When the new doctor gets involved, trouble escalates in the form of thievery, arson, and death threats.

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Here are the images of Livvie's Song and Ellie's Haven. It's a bit too soon for the cover of Sofie's Secret, but I'll be sure to post it the very day of its arrival!!!

Want to Write/Publish Your First Novel?

Hopeful writers are always asking me how to go about writing their first-ever novel. The inevitable question that follows is - "How do I get it published?"

I have a very good author/friend named Julie Lessman who's devised an excellent list of suggestions that will put hopeful writers on the right path, so with her permission I post it below:

1.) Join ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers), FHL (Faith, Hope & Love, a chapter of Romance Writers of America) to get connected with other like-minded writers and to learn a lot about your craft.

2.) Take a fiction-writing class or attend a writing seminar or conference.

3.) Join a critique group (you can do that through ACFW).

4.) Purchase and study writing books such as Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King or Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maas, AND invest in a great thesaurus such as The Synonym Finder by Rodale Press (my writer’s bible!!).

5.) Enter contests for invaluable feedback, growth, confidence, networking opportunities and to get your name out there.

6.) Frequent websites/blogs that deal with writing, such as The Seekers, a group blog that I belong to whose theme is “On the road to publication. Writing, contests, publication and everything in between.”

7.) Go for an agent first, publisher second.

8.) Then pray your heart out and put it in God’s hands.

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Thank you, Julie Lessman! And one more thing, friends!!! Take a jaunt over to AMAZON(dot)COM or CHRISTIANBOOK(dot)COM and check out all her books. She is a FABULOUS, AWARD-WINNING author of several books, the latest of which is titled A Heart Revealed, second in her Winds of Change series. Here's the beautiful cover:

Is Summer Winding Down ALREADY?



I love my hibiscus bush, but when it blossoms I know what it signifies - the winding down of summer. Oh, I hate to see it come so soon, this changing of the seasons. Fall, to me, is usually a solemn occasion for it means dragging out the jackets, digging for mittens and scarves, and dusting off the boots. Granted, autumn is beautiful in Michigan - the array of colors can be breathtaking - but it also means closing the pool, putting away the swimsuits and beach towels, taking down the gazebo, putting away the lawn chairs, and putting UP the convertible top! Around here preparing for winter is a regular event!

But... I guess change is inevitable, and without it we wouldn't grow or experience the wonders of creation. I don't look forward to saying, "Bye-bye, summer," but this year I DO look forward to something else, something quite spectacular, actually - which makes the end of summer much easier to swallow. It's scheduled to happen on October 24, 2011. What is it, you ask? Why, it's the arrival of my third grandson!

As summer winds down, there is a sort of excitement stirring within me at the thought of the changing colors, frosty air, pumpkins, dry leaves, football, marching bands, and, yes, even the heavy coats.

New life is upon us, and I can hardly wait to embrace it!