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We’re winding down the summer season. Kids are heading back to school, and this week there’s been just the hint of Fall crispness in the air. Such a relief from the summer heat and humidity that we’ve had.

I hope everyone has had a great summer. I haven’t had the chance to take a trip to the beach this year. But the wonderful thing about books is that they can transport you to any location in the world (or out of this world and into another). So, this past month, I took a little trip to a lovely place called “Chapel Springs.” It’s a made-up town set in the North Georgia mountains. The town is a tourist spot because of it’s beautiful lake and the healing waters the “springs” provide. Not to mention the fishing.

This town is the setting for the book Chapel Springs Revival, the first in the Chapel Springs series by Ane Mulligan.

I met Ane about four years ago when I was just starting this writing journey. She invited me to visit the local ACFW chapter meeting. I did and quickly joined the group. I’ve learned so much, and much of it from Ane. She’s been in the business a while and knows pretty much everyone. She’s quick with a smile, a funny story, a hug, and plenty of advice for newbie writers.

This is the first time I had a chance to read her work, and I really enjoyed it. It’s quite a departure from my usual genre reads and a bit difficult to pinpoint exactly. Ane calls it “Southern Fried Fiction,” and that is an apt description.

There is humor, drama, intrigue, and romance all rolled into one enjoyable read. The story line covers real life, heavy, family issues, all while supplying side-splitting laughs and a few poignant tears.

The characters are well-written, realistic, and relatable – even though I’m nowhere near their age or in the same life stage. But best friends Claire and Patsy have moved into a permanent place in my heart.

Claire reminds me of a cross between Lucille Ball and Anne of Green Gables, always out for an adventure, but usually ending up in some sort of “scrape.” But even when her pride (and sometimes her hair do) takes a hit, she has the love of her family and her loyal best friend by her side to see her through it.

I feel like I’ve just been on vacation to Chapel Springs and met lots of quirky new friends that I hope to get to spend more time with. As there are three other books in this series, I should have plenty of chances to visit Chapel Springs again.

Now, it’s your turn. What’s a favorite setting you enjoy reading about? Do you prefer to read about places you’ve been, you want to visit, or somewhere you will never go (like C.S. Lewis’ Narnia or Tolkien’s Middle Earth)? Leave a comment below to join the conversation.

One of my favorite songs is by Christian singer-songer Carolyn Arends. It’s called “Seize the Day.” The song was released in 2000 but continues to be one of my all-time favorites.

The lyrics for the first verse and chorus are:

As you can guess, the song caught my attention because it talked about a writer. And at that time, I aspired to be one. To be that girl working on her novel every day, despite what anyone said or thought. To be that girl who was “seizing the day.”

Carpe diem, translated from the Latin means seize the day. The first time I heard that phrase was in the 1989 movie, “Dead Poets Society,” starring Robin Williams as the eccentric and off-the-wall teacher at a stuffy prep school. He encouraged his students to “make your lives extraordinary” and taught them the phrase carpe diem.

That always stuck with me, the idea of living a non-ordinary life.

One of my favorite Bible verses, and one of the first ones I memorized as an adult, is Ephesians 5:15-16:

“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”

The word “walk” refers to our way of life. And that word “circumspectly” means “watchful and discreet; cautious; prudent.” In other words, be careful about what you do, where you go, who you hang around with. Make wise decisions.

All of this is closely related to how I naturally tend to live my life. I am a cautious person, a non-risk-taker.

But my favorite phrase here is “redeeming the time.” The word “redeem” means to offset or counterbalance something bad with something good.

Because we live in an evil world, the followers of Christ should be the light in the darkness. The love of Christ in a world of hate. The good in a world of bad.

And to me, it’s also another way of saying “Carpe diem.” Seize the day. Make your life extraordinary.

I would love to say I do this every day, but the reality is that I don’t. I want to, but I’m afraid. I worry about making the wrong decisions. Going down the incorrect path. Making mistakes.

Did you catch that? Fear. Chances not taken.

That’s me so many times. I’m working on it. God is working on me about it. I’m not there yet, but I’m on the journey.

Today, I had the wonderful opportunity to “talk ’bout fear” on the Fear Warrior blog. I met the owner of this blog at last year’s ACFW conference. We chatted about our shared fears of … well, just about everything. And she invited me to write a guest post for her blog.

You can hop over to the Fear Warrior blog to read what I said about facing the fear of the deep unknown here. Please stop by, leave a comment, and share with others. I pray that the message God gave me to share will resonate with you as well!

Lots and lots of writing advice says that to be great, writers need to do two things: write a lot and read a lot. Why? Because writing exercises your brain and your writing “muscles.” The more you do it, the better you get at it. And reading is how you learn and see what other authors do successfully.

They also say to read a lot of different books, across all genres. I’ve been reading a lot “outside” of my genre lately. I’ve read historical romance, contemporary romance, sci-fi/fantasy, and learned a lot from each. But, the last book I read was back in my own genre: romantic suspense.

I’ve enjoyed all the genres that I’ve read, but getting back to romantic suspense was like coming home, or visiting with an old friend – comfortable, familiar, and enjoyable.

The book I just finished was Drawing Fire, by Janice Cantore, book 1 in her Cold Case Justice series. It was a great read, with a fast-paced plot that kept me guessing until the end who the “bad guy” was. The characters were also interesting, realistic, and relatable. I’m actually starting on the second book in this series (Cold Case Justice) now.

I was interested in this author because Janice is a retired police officer herself, and I knew that would add authenticity to her stories. So much of what we see on television and read about in books is highly inaccurate for how an actual police department operates. I wanted to see how Janice handled the material and presented the characters.

And her main character is, of course, a female officer. This was particularly interesting to me because my main character is also a female officer. I liked how Janice characterized her heroine, Detective Abby Hart – smart, dedicated, tough, willing to do the hard stuff to get the job done, but also tender, caring, and concerned about people.

This is how I see my main character, Samantha Evans, although the two characters are also very different. But it was helpful to see how Janice wrote Abby in both her professional and personal lives.

There is another similarity that I wanted to explore in Janice’s writing. This series and her Pacific Coast Justice Series have the same hero and heroine in all three books. The suspense plots are different in each book of the series, but the “romantic” storyline runs through all three books, rather than being tied up by the end of book 1.

This is how I’ve framed my Southern Secrets series as well, with Samantha Evans and Jake Stone as the main characters in the three books and the romantic thread running through the entire series.

Many of the romantic suspense series on the market now have different main characters for each of the books within a series. This is beneficial for a number of reasons. Often, readers like a “happily ever after” with all the loose ends tied up at the end of a book. Plus, readers don’t always get to read a series in order. But there are a number of the popular series that have the same characters throughout. I think it just depends on the story the author is telling and how the plots and characters weave together.

I really enjoyed this book and look forward to the other books in this series. Now, it’s your turn. What do you think about having different characters in a series or using the same ones? Do you prefer one over the other? Is there a series with the same characters that you’ve loved? Can you think of advantages and disadvantages of each? I’d love to hear your thoughts, so please leave a comment below to join the conversation.

My co-worker and I went to lunch today. There’s a great little place next door to our office building that we enjoy, but we haven’t been in a while. Today we decided to go there and get a salad.

We ordered and found a seat, and in just a few minutes, someone stopped by our table. It was my cousin. She also works in town, and we have lunch from time to time. This little deli place is one of our favorites. I had just commented to my co-worker that I hadn’t seen my cousin there in a while, and then there she was!

She was with a couple of her friends with whom we usually share lunch, and so the five of us moved to find a table where we could all sit together and chat. My cousin also pointed out a couple we knew who were sitting with another group on the other side of the restaurant. The man used to work with both my dad and my cousin’s dad (my dad’s brother).

Now, this may all seem very convoluted to you and hard to follow, but for me, this is a common occurrence. It’s actually pretty rare for me to go somewhere without seeing someone I know – either a relative or someone from past jobs, school, or church.

It’s a running joke between my co-workers and me that they can’t take me anywhere without seeing someone I know. But you know what? I love it! It’s one of my favorite things about living in a small town.

In my book, the main character, Samantha Evans, has grown up in Chicago. She comes to the small town of Gadden Valley, Georgia (a place I made up) and experiences the culture shock of everyone knowing everyone else, and their business! It takes her a while to get used to the variety of quirky but lovable characters that populate this small town.

Maybe it’s the writer in me, but I love people. They fascinate me. Their various personality traits, quirks, and habits are what make them unique – and what makes for great characters in novels! And everyone has a story that is uniquely theirs. It’s one of the wonderful things about how God created us. We are each an “original” – God has never made the same person twice. What an awesome Creator we have!

Another thing I love about seeing people I know is that it reminds me that I’m never alone. There’s always a friend or relative around somewhere. And that makes me feel loved and secure.

Yes, living in a small town has its downsides. But there’s something special about being a part of a community. Our Creator made each of us unique, but He also made us to connect – with each other and with Him. Living in a small town gives lots of opportunities to do that. It makes me think that is what Heaven will be like – together forever with our Creator and all of God’s saints.

Maybe small town living is, after all, a tiny glimpse of Heaven on Earth.

Last week, I attended my very first “online book launch party.” I’ve seen invitations for these through social media channels a number of times and even signed up to attend a few. But I never seemed to be online at the right time and missed them.

This time, all the “stars aligned,” and I was online and had time to attend. It was for a writer I had met at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference last year. Her name is Pepper Basham, and she writes historical and contemporary romance.

Her latest book, “Just the Way You Are,” is what she has coined as “Britallachian,” which is a culture clash of British and Appalachian. Pepper is from the area of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Appalachian Trail. Appalachian culture is a thing all its own, if you’ve never experienced it. Part Southern gentility, part “redneck,” steeped in the rich history of this country with ancestry from Great Britain, Ireland, Wales, and Scotland. Appalachian families are colorful, proudly American, and fiercely protective of their own. I know, because this is MY family’s ancestry.

So when I heard a bit about Pepper’s new book, I wanted to be a part of her online book launch party. It was a lot of fun, once I got the hang of how it worked. They set up a Facebook event page, and all the attendees were “online” at the appointed time. They had a moderator who made posts about the book and invited the attendees to respond to questions and games related to the book. Having the moderator allowed Pepper to spend her time responding and engaging with her “guests.”

They had quotes from the book and showed some pictures of actors and famous places that inspired the characters and locations of the book. We even got to put together an online puzzle with a quote from the book. So much fun!

There were also giveaways for special prize packages, including gifts related to the book as well as signed copies of the book. The names were drawn at random from those who responded to the posts. And guess what? I won a prize! It’s on its way to me by mail soon. It wasn’t a copy of the book, though, but I was so intrigued by the things that were said about the book that I had to go buy my own electronic copy to put on my Kindle.

I started reading the book on Saturday morning, and I couldn’t put it down and finished it on Sunday evening. I haven’t read a book that quickly since Hunger Games!

The characters drew me into the story from the first lines. The heroine, Eisley Barrett (pronounced “Eyes-Lee”) is quirky and fun and oh, so relatable! A single mother of three, she comes with her own package of past hurts and insecurities. I related so well to her love of chocolate and imperfect body image. She was funny, open, honest, and just precious.

The hero, Wes Harrison was – as Eisley called him – Ghirardelli chocolate in human form. A true British dream boat, Wes was bitter and jaded by his past and his distrust of people. What better heroine to change his heart than someone as open and honest as Eisley! Their romance sizzled from the moment they met, and their love was so honest, pure, and sweet! “Swoony” was the word Pepper used, and she was right!

But it wasn’t just the “swoony” romance that kept my attention. A family ancestral mystery had me turning pages to find out what happened. And the spiritual truths woven through this enjoyable tale were so rich and deep, and eye-opening! I gained some insights about myself by seeing what Eisley and Wes were going through in their own spiritual lives.

And then there were the secondary characters – as I told my mom, “I KNOW these people!” They were so real and added so much to the story. And the humor had me literally laughing out loud!

All I can say is, “Thank you, Pepper Basham, for wrecking my weekend!” And quite possibly the rest of my life! Spending time in Eisley and Wes’s worlds has quite possibly ruined me for “ordinary life” forever.

Okay, your turn – what are you reading this week? Have you ever read a book that had characters who reminded you of people you knew in real life? What’s a character you’ve related to and why? Join the conversation by leaving a comment below.

What do you do when things don’t go as planned?

The beginning of a new year is a time to start out fresh, to “hit the ground running” with renewed energy, to make a dent in your “to do” list and start reaching your goals.

Unless it’s not.

So, I had great plans for where I’d be 9 days into this new year. I was supposed to have cleaned my house, organized my files, and gotten a kick start on growing my “writing platform,” not to mention have at least another chapter of Book 2 under my belt.

One of my goals is to blog weekly with regularly scheduled, timely posts. This blog is a small attempt to keep that goal.

But instead of doing any of those things I mentioned above, I am right now sitting at my parents’ dining room table in my sweats. And not only have I not done any of those things on my list … I haven’t even taken down my tiny little Christmas tree. And that was the only Christmas decoration I put up this year.

Yes, I know it’s January 9th.

My new year has not started out according to plan. And it’s not even a case of switching from Plan A to Plan B. I think I’m on about Plan W by now.

New Year’s Eve morning, I awoke with a stuffy, runny nose and sneezing. That progressed to what felt like a full-on head cold, and I was in bed New Year’s Eve night by 11 p.m. No, I didn’t even stay awake to see the ball drop – very unusual for me.

I spent the next couple of days doing much of nothing but lying on the couch binge watching a favorite, old TV show. Back to work on Tuesday, and on Wednesday morning, I woke up with a strange rash on my stomach and back.

A trip to the allergist confirmed my fears: shingles. Never had that before, although like most of my generation, I had chicken pox as a young child. I was sent home with a big bottle of large pills to take every 5 hours for the next 7 days.

Not knowing exactly what to expect with this virus, I went to my parents’ house to recuperate and got snowed in for the weekend.

I’m so very thankful that my bout has been on the milder side and I’m now on the mend.

But it’s just a reminder that life doesn’t always go according to plan. In fact, it rarely hits anything resembling a plan. Rather, it seems to be a series of ups and downs, mountain top experiences and deep valleys of woe. You never know what might pop up around the next bend in the road.

A friend and I have been discussing this fact recently, and he’s reminded me that life was never intended to be smooth sailing. Life is hard and filled with things that test us, try us, but ultimately, improve us.

The raging waters of our life journey are meant to rub off our rough edges and make us stronger while also making us more acutely aware of our human weakness. We are reminded that we are not meant to go through life alone, and that in fact, we are never alone. God is walking each step with us. For He alone is the one who knows what lies around the next bend, and what we endure today will prepare us for what’s ahead.

Life isn’t meant to make us happy. It is to make us holy. More like Jesus Christ, our ultimate and perfect example.

Does that mean we should throw out all of our plans? Should we just ramble through life with no direction, no goals, no dreams? Absolutely not. The old saying goes, “If you aim for nothing, you’ll hit it every time.” Life is meant to be lived with goals and dreams. But when Plan A becomes Plan W, we must learn to roll with it, to adjust and adapt, to change direction based on the new information at hand, and forge ahead.

The only way to prepare for the next bend in the road is to expect the unexpected, knowing that everything that comes our way has a Divine order to it, even if we don’t understand how or why.

Overall, this has been a good time of relaxing and enjoying my parents’ company, of being loved on and nurtured. A reminder that I need some down time and companionship once in a while.

Just a little detour on my way to reaching my goals, but they will still be there when I am well and can get back to them. After all, who cares if my Christmas tree is still up? It’s not bothering any one but me, and if I hadn’t told you, you would’ve never known. Maybe learning to take things in stride and not getting stressed out over things I cannot control is one way God is teaching me to achieve Balance in my life. (Remember that goal?)

What about you? Can you think of a time when things went wrong? Did you learn a valuable lesson through it? How do you handle the unexpected? I’d love to hear from you, so please share by leaving a comment below.