Something strange happened to me last month. I started watching Christmas movies, which I typically do not watch . . . or like . . . or tolerate (unless, of course, we’re talking The Santa Clause with Tim Allen or White Christmas with Bing and Danny and Rosemary and Vera-Ellen, or (of course) It’s a […]
The Story Behind the Picture: A Boat on the Galilee
We began our day, on that first morning of my second trip to Israel–the one in which Miriam, a Jewish woman, and I, a Christian woman, would “walk the land together”–with a hearty meal. The night before we’d stayed at wonderful hotel, Nof Ginosar, along the Sea of Galilee, then woke to enjoy one of […]
The Mystery of Barbara B (reprised)
I met Barbara B. when we were twelve years old and both attended the same church camp. You know the kind. Set out in the middle of the woods. Unpainted plank cabins with row upon row of cots separated by tiny end tables stretch from screened walls of windows to screened walls of windows. These […]
Where Were You in (December) ’62?
Writing about a time associated with your youth holds a certain satisfaction. As I wrote (and researched) for my novel Beth Bettencourt, which will release in 2026 (gracious, that sounds like a long way away!), I was continuously transported back to the days of my youth. I can hardly remember 1962, which is when the […]
Beth Bettencourt: The Way It Was & The Way It Is
Something I love about writing a novel set in another era is that I get to mentally return to a simpler time. This doesn’t mean a perfect time, but only that the time was less complex in nature. Let’s take, for example, social media. Do you ever wonder what we did before social media? Oh, […]
Beth Bettencourt–The Idea
I discovered this painting (left) while working on my manuscript, working title: Beth Bettencourt. (I added the name next to it.) The book is set in 1962, during our time of Camelot, in my fictional Southern town of Bynum, Georgia. Bynum is not a real town but is based on my hometown of Sylvania, Georgia. […]
Most Mornings
Most mornings I wake at 6:30. Not because I want to, but because I set an alarm and that’s when it goes off. Stupid alarm. Sometimes I hit snooze. Okay. Most times I hit snooze. Five minutes. I just need five more minutes. By 6:40, I’m up, the coffee is grinding, and I’m preparing my […]
Lessons Learned in Ireland: Day One–Tipperary
I went to Ireland for the first time in 2019 and left with a plan to return two years later. Of course, that didn’t happen, COVID being what it was . . . But when world returned to something akin to normal, a plan was hatched. Before I get into the second trip, let me […]