The first email came sometime in July of 2012. I admit… I opened an email from “Wesley” with trepidation. Too often emails that come in from men are fake emails from guys in Russia trying to convince you that they’re American generals dying to get to know you. Why they think I can’t hover over their Continue Reading
Why You Should Get This Wonderful Book Today
I can’t even remember why I put it on my Kindle shelf. Love, Laughter, and Luminarias. One thing I do know is that I had to read something else to make room for it. While I’m confessing, I should add that I distinctly recall wondering why I was going to all that effort for a book I didn’t know Continue Reading
Some of the Best Inspiration Comes from a Diner
Booth 14. It’s been my writing home away from home for several years now. I’ve seen it all there—and I mean all. In fact, I have two or three “Tales from Booth 14” videos up on YouTube and half a dozen more to share. From flying plates and police with shields (those poor guys looked like they Continue Reading
The No. 1 Way to Solve Your Money Problems
My kids used to do “stitcheries.” Simple little sayings and images embroidered with running stitches into fabric-covered batting. It gave them a quilted appearance that had a “primitive” look. Sometimes we framed them, others we sewed them into pillows or added them to quilts and tote bags. I’d Continue Reading
3 Reasons This Book Will Make You Sad
“Life isn’t a fairy tale, Chautona. It's joy and sorrow both. It’s the reality of marriage vows—better and worse, richer and poorer, sickness and health. There is no “happily ever after,” and yet the true ever-after is most definitely joyous. Life is a paradox.” Those aren’t his exact words, of Continue Reading
When Is It Too Early for Valentine’s Day Stories?
The email came out of the blue. Could I look over a new Austen retelling and give some input? Um, duh! I’d read Barbara Cornthwaite’s George Knightley Esquire books, her Christmas story about Edmund and Fanny from Mansfield Park in The Very Austen Christmas anthology, and a few other Continue Reading
How to Reclaim Sanity & Start the New Year off Right
I read fiction—a boatload of it. Mostly because I learn so well through story but also because I need that escape. However, what many people don’t know is that I also love a good non-fiction book. I love self-help, theological books on points of doctrine, historical memoirs and explorations—the Continue Reading
3 Most Important Reasons You Should “Always” Leave a Review
Mortification, thy name is Chautona. That’s about how I felt when I saw the review. The 1-star review. For my children’s novel—Shadows & Secrets. I did not like the storyline - not quite believable. Too much juicy sex for my taste. Strike it out for me.” The storyline was fantasy. Um, Continue Reading
Rumor Has It That This Is a Great Book… But Is It?
It was one of those books. The ones that you see everywhere. When someone says, “What should I read next?” it was the first recommended. Almost every day someone said, “I’m reading A Rumored Fortune and it’s sooooo good!” I had Joanna Davidson Politano’s first book, Lady Jane Disappears. It’d Continue Reading
Have I Got a Birthday Gift for YOU!
The paper cutter sliced through another sheet of cardstock—another. One by one, I stacked sheets in piles. The base, the image layer, patterned paper, ribbons, tags… Once I’d gathered all the pieces, assembly began. Some needed coloring, others just layering. As much as I love to use ribbons and Continue Reading
The Second Just the Write Best Novel Awards
A symphony of typewriters fills the room. Clacks of the keys, zips of the carriage, and the percussive ting! as they reach the edges of the pages. Applause drowns out the final notes as the conductor turns to address the audience. “Welcome to the Second Annual Just the Write Awards! It is my Continue Reading
Why A Magnifying Glass Is the Perfect Christmas Gift
I don’t remember how old I was, but it had to be after I was ten or so. I’d just read another three or four Nancy Drews—the old pink, library hardbacks, in fact—and something about the books bugged me. Nancy Drew books always had a magnifying glass somewhere inside. But why? She never used the Continue Reading
