THE ALLIANCE Advance Reader Copy Giveaway!
Welcome to my new website, which has been lovingly (and, might I add, patiently) created by the wonderful Jessica Maher of Belle Greye Designs. Jessica is the daughter of one of my long-time author friends, Shellie Rushing Tomlinson, and they
“Mom! Look at me!” Learning To Focus On My Child’s Face
For the past few months, I've noticed that my almost four-year-old daughter, Miss A, has a floating eye. It usually only happens when she’s tired or so into a story—where expressive hand motions abound—that she has trouble focusing on my
Happy Little Clouds: A Writer Tries Her Hand at Painting
Last night, I tried my hand at painting. I’ve already been barred from painting walls, because no matter how careful I am in the beginning, the paint always ends up splattered in places it should never be. But I thought
The Power of Music
Monday morning, fresh from the shower, I opened the vintage music box I’d gotten for Christmas and took out my earrings, then turned the little dial so the music would play. Miss A, my almost four-year-old, watched from her perch
Walking Into a New Year, Side By Side
My mom and I sat on rockers on her and my dad’s front porch, listening to the wet-weather creek rushing by in the darkness. The stars were so clear, it was as if I was no longer near-sighted. Around the
The Story Behind The Alliance
I guess you could say I had a slightly different childhood. When I was six and my brother ten, our family stood in a field on the camp where my parents were caretakers, and my parents told us that this
Motherhood Never Ends
I awoke to light outside, meaning I’d overslept my alarm. My two little cherubs awoke soon after I did, so I had to forfeit my morning ritual of making peanut butter toast and French-pressed coffee, which I nibble and sip
How My Daughter’s Greatest Challenge Became a Gift
My firstborn didn’t smile for months after she was born. She didn’t laugh or interact. But she was very aware of her environment—watching, with somber brown eyes, everyone who crossed her path. Because of this visual and auditory stimulation,
Can’t See The Pine Cones For The Logged Trees
Covered with an awning to protect her from the unseasonably warm sun, my three-year-old sat inside the stroller like a mini Queen of Sheba. She wanted to know what the yellow thing was in the field (a combine) or the
My Publishing Faux Pas & What It Taught Me
I spent the day prior to that evening’s email sending out endorsement requests for my novel, The Alliance, releasing this spring. For anyone not in the publishing field, this is akin to having one of those “I’m not wearing pants”