Writing Resources During Covid Virus Facing this unique moment in time in productive and hopeful communities February began with me typing much of my second book in the hospital with my father recovering from a difficult fall and hip surgery. I literally drove home from a week with my parents to try and find toilet paper and supplies as things worsened due to the virus. At the time of writing this, it’s more than eight weeks since Covid Virus stay-at-home began for my husband and I and our two teen boys in Northern California. We are doing okay so far,…
2020 Updates!
Thank you for your support during an exciting year and happy new year 2020! I wanted to give an update about some neat things in the works and what will be coming in the months that follow. Upcoming and recent appearances I wrote a science/devotional about the amazing inner world of diamonds and gems for Clubhouse magazine for children with Focus on the Family, and it will be out in February, 2020! I just received this preview and have to share how rewarding it was working with the Gemology community in researching the specialty of Photomicrography – taking very detailed…
Five Lessons Disney’s The Mandalorian Teaches About Creating Epic Characters
Like much of the country, I have fallen for the two main characters in Disney’s The Mandalorian series on the new Disney Plus service. On a recent visit to The Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland, I got to really consider Baby Yoda, or The Child, and the Mandalorian himself as characters. We even spotted some Easter Eggs or items in the park which you won’t want to miss and so keep reading :). And if you haven’t watched yet ++spoiler alert++ so I recommend watching before reading further. How did we become so connected with so few words? I’m not the…
Five Tips for Jumping Back Into Writing
Five important things to remember about jumping back into writing your WIP – work in progress. Perhaps you’re a writer like me and have had some important life-interrupts that have kept you for a period of time from jumping back into your work. Instead of seeing this as a negative, it’s better to look forward and use these tips to shortcut your way back into that writing mindset. Sometimes it can feel like you’re racing snails in your writing pursuits – how do you get a wider perspective and press on while challenges or interruptions are pulling you aside? I’ve…
Repost: Actress Amanda McDonough’s Journey From Deafness To A Loud Voice For Change
In honor of #storieswithstephfeb19 – An encouraging friend – When I think of someone inspiring, I consider actress Amanda McDonough and her new book #readytobeheard – How I lost my hearing and found my voice. Amanda and I met at a writer’s conference and I was immediately drawn to her sunshine personality and positivity. It was only when she moved her hands with sign language that I realized she had hearing issues. 🤘🏻 The main character in my middle grade fantasy is hard of hearing, so I felt honored when Amanda shared her story of waking one day to complete…
The Air We Breathe – Caught In The Bay Area Smoke Out
Our family lives in Northern California in the Bay Area and we’ve been caught in an unusual situation, covered with smoke. As wildfire survivors who lost our home and all our possessions eleven years ago, it’s been a challenging couple of weeks as smoke from the Camp Fire rolled in and, like a stealthy dragon, wound its tail around our beautiful area. I was already having trouble with the news and praying fervently for friends’ relatives who were threatened in different fires throughout California. But suddenly… We awoke hearing sirens and seeing complete smoke outside the windows on a Saturday…
Pitch Wars 2018 #BOOSTMYBIO
My WIP: LAUREN GOLDRAY AND THE CRYSTAL TIMESCOPE Middle Grade Fantasy This is my entry for #BoostMyBio for Pitch Wars 2018. Thank you to Auggie for hosting this great time to visit and meet other aspiring authors and get more involved in the fun of Pitch Wars, and everyone who makes this such a super event. About my WIP: When I was in gemology school (at the Gemological Institute of America – GIA) we studied the history of gems. I kept being intrigued that there were still unsolved mysteries about certain centuries of techniques and gems with special powers or…
One little voice
Can one little voice make a difference? I hope so. Having taken pause to notice a few things in the world, and help us craft our own world a bit more after our recent move, I’m going to be fine-tuning the blog and my social media in the coming months. A force for the positive It’s been a bumpy year and I can’t thank my writing community and friends enough for your support. I’ve noticed that even the smallest gesture can make a difference – an email, a call, a positive or funny post on line. Just that one little…
Twitter takeover, great conferences updates, and more!
Hi friends, I’m writing this like a newsletter since there’s a lot going on right now for the blog (my Twitter is taken over by Shilo Snow!) and also with some neat conferences I’ve been able to attend. Thanks for your patience while things have been getting updated, like upcoming articles and I’m lining up some neat things. RIGHT NOW -Reclaiming Shilo Snow Scavenger Hunt! This week author Mary Weber and Just Commonly are hosting a huge, international giveaway and my Twitter feed has been taken over! If you’ve stopped at Thorn & Vine looking for the next clue, just…
Cheers to 2018! Great things on the way this new year!
Greetings in the new year! I’ve had a quiet holiday, our first in our new home in the Bay Area. I wanted to touch base and let you know what’s coming up this first part of the year. 2017 was an emotional year, supporting many who’ve lost everything in life and need to make a new beginning. I’m finding I need a reboot as well, so will be refocusing the blog on the following areas given some neat opportunities that have recently come to light. Series: Becoming a resilient writer After 10 years of corporate writing and years blogging and…
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