 I absolutely adore Easter. As much as I love Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas, I might even love Easter more. I like the food (we do lamb and cheesy potatoes and peas--and for breakfast, homemade cinnamon rolls). I love the flowers that are blooming like the dogwood tree next door. I love new dresses and sandals and sometimes even a hat. I love the colors and the focus on Jesus's resurrection. Seriously. What's not to love?
So, why, of all my books, have I written none that are actually during Easter?
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 Snow White had seven dwarves, but I have my story set in the real world. So, I needed seven male figures to be an influence in Kari's life. At the end of Rendersella, we see Kari receive a note from her uncles in Georgia. As soon as my fingers typed those words, I knew there were seven of them. And that she was a Snow White character.
That said, I had no idea what I was getting into by creating seven different characters who all had to be differentiated enough you could tell who was whom. I ended up having AI create the picture above so I could have something to look at and remind myself what each of them looked like instead of trying to remember it all in my head. My editor definitely made me go back and add more details several places, but I love how they turned out. And to make it more fun, they're all named after apples.
Do you ever feel like you know someone after reading a book she wrote? That's the way I feel about Terri Wangard. I have met her in person, too, but I think I've seen into some of her personality through her work. I'm blessed to have been a content editor for three of Terri's books now, and her newest is about to release. This one wraps up the series and I highly recommend all of them, especially if you love novels set in WWII. Now's your chance to get to know Terri a bit too.  What is it about World War II that makes you want to set your books there?
I didn’t plan on writing so many WWII books. My debut book, Friends & Enemies, was inspired by letters found in my grandmother’s house. Distant relatives in postwar Germany had been receiving care packages from the American family. I was a history major in college and was familiar with different history magazines. I thought one of these would be interested in the letters, but maybe not enough detail was included. Then I had the idea to create the German family’s backstory. That was to be it for WWII, but an editor told me if I hoped for a contract, I’d probably need a series. I had lots of unused research on the B-17 airmen, so I wrote two more books based on the navigators. If you haven't had the pleasure of reading one of Tonya Ashley's stories yet, get ready. She's guesting today to talk about the inspiration behind her newest novella in Romancing the Elements, Grit and Grace. Read on, because you're going to see from the beautiful writing below that you don't want to miss this sweet and inspirational story.  The first time I hiked to Fuzzy Butt Falls, it was late autumn.
A couple of days’ rain had left the ground soft and messy. The trail isn’t maintained, but worn enough follow without getting entirely lost. A horse trail crosses through it, and the ground had been churned to thick mud. My boys and I skirted around those spots, stepping carefully along the edges, brown leaves plastered to our boots. Most of the trees had already surrendered their leaves. The landscape felt hushed. Gray trunks, gray rock, brown leaf litter bathed in golden autumn. Only the evergreens held their color. The air was cool and crisp. I remember wearing a thick plaid flannel and being grateful for it.  I first read Pride and Prejudice back in high school. It took me about six weeks to get through because of the older language and it was harder than a lot of other books I had read back then. In college, I took multiple courses that led me to read more novels written in that era, including several others of Jane Austen. Having a professor to help me walk through it led to a greater understanding and a greater appreciation of it.
Since graduating, I have read all six of Jane Austen's novels (only six!) more than once. And seen several of the movie adaptations. And you know what? I'm happy to read them again and again. Hard topics, while it's good that they're mentioned in short shows and commercials, sometimes need a deeper dive for us to really appreciate everything they entail. My friend Heather Greer does an excellent job of showing the hard side of alcoholism in her new book, Hope Even After. But she does more than that too. Read on to see why she chose to deal with something so hard in her newest romance.  What I’ve seen and experienced in my life prompted Luke and Daisy’s story in Hope Even After. It’s a different story than I usually tell, but I hope you’ll stick with me for a few minutes as I share my heart about why their story is so important for those in our churches today.
I grew up in the era when Jessie got hooked on caffeine pills to cope with the pressures of Bayside High and DJ was wrongfully accused of drinking by her dad and uncles when a drink was spilled on her. In those days, a brain on drugs looked like a fried egg, and we all understood that kids who used drugs could learn it by watching parents who used them. Each of us went through the D.A.R.E. program at least one time in our middle to junior high years. A few weeks ago, Ellen Withers was my guest author interview. She spoke about her newest novella, and today, we're blessed to have Jenny Carlisle here to tell us about her story in this fun collection. Warning, cute dog photos ahead! Do you love pets in stories?  A novella calls for focus. No time for extra storylines or a large cast of characters. My readers know this is a problem for me. For the second time in my fiction writing journey, I have been asked to place a spotlight on the romance between the main characters. Fortunately, my research for my latest story inspired a couple of companions who enhance the action, and even play a part in bringing my protagonists together.
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This is a place for me to tell you about what I'm writing, talk about the process or where some of my ideas came from, or even have other authors come in and talk about their books.
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