Maybe it's because I'm too much like Dean from Corner Booth. Perhaps it's because I'm just weird. Maybe both. Yeah. Probably that. But silence seems to be a theme with me. When I wrote Speak Now, I did it because I wanted a less dialogue-driven novel. I thought I could make it work that way. Continue Reading
Ante Up! Pre-Order Is Live!
What's the word on Ante Up!? Well, let's begin with Ante Up!'s history. After all, not everyone has read the series (and you'll want to before you read this book!) Once upon a time, a mother in the Mojave Desert wrote a story of a young woman floundering as the "new mom" of eight. That single, Continue Reading
Subplots: Road Maps to Dead Ends
This post contains affiliate links and as such, I may receive a small commission at no additional expense to you. I've been reading the Miss Buncle books by D.E. Stevenson, and one thing Barbara Buncle says frequently is how she has no imagination. Before I explain why I've shared this little Continue Reading
Multiculturalism & The Birth of a Legacy
Okay, I'm taking liberties with the use of multicultural, but multi means more than one, and the word just fits best with what happened as I wrote Deepest Roots of the Heart.The book wasn't supposed to exist. You see, I had an idea for a single, stand-alone novel. A book where one of my father's Continue Reading
Laura Hile: Favorite Authors
I was first introduced to Austen-inspired fiction by my dear friend and editor, Barbara Cornthwaite. She did a fabulous job with writing Austen's Emma from Knightley's perspective. And let me tell you, I loved it. She managed to show a modern audience what Knightley saw in the spoiled, selfish Continue Reading
A Unique, Hilarious Interview with Essie from Madeline
Note: Links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you. One of the things I love to do from time to time is do an interview with some of my characters to get a feel for their take on their stories--what would they do? Why did they do this? Why did Continue Reading
Author Q & A: Stick-to-it-iveness?
I get lots of questions from readers, but some of them are perfect for my Q & A segment. This one on "stick-to-it-iveness" really struck home for me. Note: links in this post may be affilliate links and clicks on them will provide me a small commission at no extra cost to you. From Continue Reading
Making Her Debut: Meddlin’ Madeline!
(links in this post may be affiliate links & I might receive a small commission at no extra expense to you) Madeline's Debut: Rockland, 1901! Madeline Brown. Just an ordinary girl in an ordinary Midwest city. But changes are coming her way. She's learning that she sees things others miss. Continue Reading
The Unofficial Glossary to Meddlin’ Madeline: Sweet on You
One of the best parts about writing the Meddlin' Madeline series is playing with words that I grew up using and reading, but most people don't use anymore. I had parents of a literary turn of mind, so I grew up being told to, "Slow down and enunciate." This began at age 3. So while other kids were Continue Reading
Meddlin’ Madeline: Five Fun Facts
With the launch of Meddlin' Madeline: Sweet on You only days away, I thought I'd share a few fun facts about the book and my writing process with it. As you probably have read, the idea for Madeline came when I was searching for photos for another book idea (one I still haven't fleshed out yet!). I Continue Reading
Controversy & Writing the Hard Stuff
Let's face it. The world loves controversy. You've seen the news. They don't report on how everyone agreed on something. They report on how the city council broke out in a shouting match over which road gets paved next or the color of napkins at the next mayoral dinner or whatever. Seriously, Continue Reading
OCCWC: or what I did this weekend
WHEW! Well, I'm semi-coherent, so I thought I'd update you on the OCCWC (the conference I was at this weekend). It started early (well, for me) Thursday morning. Had to get up at 7. I survived. This is a testament to the Lord's goodness, and I am not being facetious. My friend, April, and I got Continue Reading
