If a cluttered desk is the sign of a cluttered mind, what is the significance of a clean desk? ~Dr. Laurence J. Peter A writer needs a little clutter going in her head. Got to pull those stories from somewhere. Certainly a swept clean mind is going to be no help at all. I first wrote about this in 2013, …
A New Book Means a New First Line
A first line of a story is the baited hook an author hopes will catch a reader’s interest so they will want to read the second line and on and on until the last line on the last page. Some readers will check out that first line before they decide if the book is one they want to read. I’ve …
The One Word Challenge
“Your words have power. Speak words that are kind, loving, positive, uplifting, encouraging, and life-giving.” -Unknown Have you ever heard of the One Word Challenge? Several years ago, pre-pandemic years, picking one word for your year was all the rage. I’m sure it’s still out there floating around for some, but I haven’t heard as much about it as I …
Celebrating a New Year
Happy New Year! Here we are ready to start through the days of the gift of a new year. Seems not so long ago we were switching over to a new century at 2000 with worries that was going to somehow stop the country because all the computers would have headaches changing 1999 to 2000. We survived that slide into …
Last Chance to Enter My End of the Year Book Giveaway
The last time always seems sad, but it isn’t really. The end of one thing is only the beginning of another. ~Laura Ingals Wilder, These Happy Golden Years Thanks to those of you who have dropped in here during the month of December when so much is sometimes going on with Christmas gatherings, special church services, and maybe new books …
A Christmas Memory – Mom’s Crackerjacks
I hope you all had a blessed and joyful Christmas Day. My family is coming tomorrow to celebrate and so you can imagine how I’ve been as busy as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. But it’s a good busy as I get ready to have all my children and grandchildren home for Christmas. While Christmas …
Another Church Tradition – Christmas Nativity Plays
When we remember a special Christmas, it is not the presents that made it special, but the laughter, the feeling of love, and the togetherness of friends and family that made that Christmas special. ~Catherine Pulsifer Sunday we talked about Candlelight Services, and how much those of us who had been to one of those services liked that worship experience. …
Have You Ever Been to a Candlelight Service?
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” …John 8:12 (NIV) I just got home for our little church’s yearly Candlelight Service. While most churches that have a Candlelight Service do so on Christmas Eve, we decided …
What Makes Characters Come to Life for You?
Do the characters in the stories you read come to life in your head? And in your heart? Is there some special something about the book or the characters that makes that happen for you? A few years ago I got a very nice note from a reader who had gone to Rosey Corner. She hadn’t read the first book, …
The Gift of Sisters
You can kid the world. But not your sister. Charlotte Gray) Did you ever read a quote that carried any more truth? Sisters know us and love us in a way no one else can. One of the reasons I’m thinking about sisters today is because it’s my middle sister’s birthday. So I hunted up a picture of my sisters …










