Christmas 1982. The Esplanade—Oxnard, California. The store sold nothing but mugs, and I read every one of them. I bought one for a friend that showed a hippo, a flying bird, and two sheep. Cracked up all the way home on that one (hippo, birdie, two ewes). But then there was this other one. I Continue Reading
How Can You Praise God When You Made Every Mistake in the Book?
The day I really began my mothering journey... It was a Wednesday. I could never forget that for reasons you’ll see in a minute or two. I worked at a local Chinese delivery place—Mandarin Express. My shift began at ten in the morning, and I got off at five. Sometime around two or so, after I’d Continue Reading
A Poem on Your Pillow Day… Who knew? (a FREE short story)
There's a "holiday" for everything from tweed day to lazy day (although I could get into that one). I wanted something to go with last year's May Day story, "Bringing in the May," but what comes after May Day? Mother's Day. Um... for a fledgling relationship, that might be pushing it. Continue Reading
What Happens When a Christian Doesn’t “Look” Like One?
He taught me a lesson—a strange man with body art who I’d never met before and would likely never meet again. The elevator stopped on my floor and the doors opened. There he was. He was big—really beefy, not overweight. Just a linebacker waiting to happen. Tattoos decorated his arms and lower Continue Reading
What Should You Do When You Fail To Show Compassion?
Male. Latino-Black. Average height. Cornrows in his hair. Muscular. Pierced ears—gauges. "Muscle shirt." Pants held on only by the grace of God. I’ll call him Joey. I think he looks like a Joey. Not a cute little boy, Joey—a cool dude Joey. I picture him with friends Marco and Ty. He may not Continue Reading
Is True Love Overrated in the Fiction Genre?
Is True Love Overrated in the Fiction Genre? Sometimes, it really feels like it. I'm just sayin'. You read posts and listen to conversations and all of a sudden, that priest guy in The Princess Bride fills your mind and all you can hear is "Wuv... twue wuv..." Gag. But here's the thing. God Continue Reading
The Best Tips on How to Select YA for Your Teen
I’ve said it before. As a kid, I read everything—from total junk to great stuff. And for a while there, that included stuff from the extensive YA section of the library. From coming of age angst to confusion on relationships, to figuring out just what was true and wasn’t, and a host of bizarreness Continue Reading
Is This Author Really Worth the Hype?
“Have you read this book?” The question is asked with the confidence that the answer would be in the affirmative. I mean, anyone with any sense has read it, right? All it takes is a shake of my head for the reaction. “What?!” Suspicion furrows a brow and narrows eyes. Lips purse. Then Continue Reading
Should You Really Judge This Book by Its Cover?
It had an outdoor checkerboard with autumn trees in the background—a skyscraper. I paid a lot of money for that photo—clueless that it was a picture of Central Park in New York City. Oops. In the place of an O in the title, I used a checker piece. I thought I was so clever. Look, I Continue Reading
Why this Book Will Be Worth Your Time and Money
Brown paper bags with a big blue prize ribbon on them. It said “Stater Bros” in the middle of that blue ribbon. Our preferred grocery store. Well, and the only one actually in Yucca Valley, California in 1984. We lived in Landers about twenty miles away—at the end of Dusty Mile Road. No, Continue Reading
Just Who Is The True Apple of This Governess’s Eye?
Sarah E. Ladd. I’d never heard of her. I know, I know. Shoot me now. Do you know how many awesome Christian fiction authors there are out there? I can’t know them all. Kind of wish I could, though. Wouldn’t that be cool? Still, I promised myself I’d try out new authors this year—books that Continue Reading
Why Do Readers Love Weird Happily-Ever-Afters?
Go to Avid Readers of Christian Fiction on Facebook in almost any given week, and you’ll find at least one request for a good marriage of convenience or mail-order bride story. I feel like I should say, “I’m not exaggerating!” But I don’t have to because I suspect most people know it’s true. Continue Reading
