My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that? –Bob Hope I’m guessing most of you do have up your Christmas tree, but I’m confessing that I don’t. But when I do get it up this weekend, I hope, it …
1st Sunday Devotional – Winter Beauty
“It is the life of the crystal, the architect of the flake, the fire of the frost, the soul of the sunbeam. This crisp winter air is full of it.” ~John Burroughs Winter hasn’t shown up on the calendar, but it has shown up around here in the air. No snow to notice yet, but that too will come. In …
A Penny in Your Pocket
Do you have a penny in your pocket? Odds are, you have a jar or dish full of pennies somewhere in your house that you don’t bother to count. According to a news article I came across on the internet, there are approximately 130 billion pennies currently in circulation or hiding out in those piggy banks at your house. That’s …
A Dog Can Be a Writer’s Best Friend
Several years ago I did an online Q & A about Animals and Authors. That was before my previous dog, Oscar, died of bone cancer way before I was ready to say goodbye. I hope you like this journey back in time to when Oscar was my best dog and always ready to support my writing efforts. 🙂 Quid Pro …
So Many Reasons to Be Thankful
There is one day that is ours. There is one day when all we Americans who are not self-made go back to the old home to eat saleratus biscuits and marvel how much nearer to the porch the old pump looks than it used to. Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American. ~O. Henry Thanksgiving is a …
Miss Sally Counts Her Blessings
November 23, 1966 Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky on the day before Thanksgiving. Don’t you just love Thanksgiving? I do. And it’s going to be especially good this year because everybody’s coming to Miss Sally’s for dinner. Miss Sally is the best cook ever. People nearly come to blows over the last pieces of her cherry pies at …
Threads of Happiness
Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years. ~Simone Signoret My husband and I just made it through another year together and celebrated an anniversary this weekend. Oh, the memories that an anniversary can bring to mind. We were very young when we met. Darrell was a …
How about Some Q & A Time?
“Be direct, simple, brief, vigorous, and lucid.” – H.W. Fowler (1858-1933) I’ve been eyebrow deep in words this week as I finish up word by word, sentence by sentence edits on my spring release, In the Shadow of the River. Eyebrow deep sounds more accurate than knee deep in the case of editing. Of course, I have already edited the …
Which Cover Was a Favorite?
“I always think that it’s wrong to put images of my protagonists on the cover of my novels because readers can identify with characters only if they are given the chance to imagine them independently.” ― Orhan Pamuk, The Innocence of Objects Cover art is so much fun to see and to talk about. We’ve all been told that you …
Cover Reveal – In the Shadow of the River
Seeing the artwork for the cover of a new book is always a highlight. I’ve already shared this new cover for In the Shadow of the River in my newsletter. I’ve shared it on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. So if you are on my email list or see me out there on some social media sites, you’ve probably already seen …










