Today marks my oldest child’s 27th year. It does NOT seem like “I” am that old. LOL He’s a great kid (man, I guess) even if we don’t always see eye to eye on things. :) The above picture is another scene from Switzerland. I’m not sure when or where I took it, but it’s […]
Being Thankful
On Thursday our US authors and readers will be celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday. Unfortunately in Australia we don’t have a Thanksgiving tradition like the US and Canada. Many years ago an American friend taught me how to make a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Roast turkey and mashed potato served with gravy and cranberry sauce is often […]
My First Book Crush and Paperback Giveaway
Christmas my 4th grade year, my parents got me the entire Little House on the Prarie book collection. Right after opening the first book, Little House in the Big Woods, I had my first ever binge-reading experience. By the time I worked my way through the series (which I read before the new year) I […]
When Art Inspires Life
Many authors get story inspiration from their own lives, myself included. But how about when something you’ve written in a book comes true in your life? Two years ago, when I joined the Arcadia Valley Romance project, I started my contribution with a novella called Sheltered Hearts. It introduced former major league baseball player Alex Quintana, recently […]
What’s Missing? by Deb Kastner
A Unique Christmas Mystery As many of you know, I’ve gone “hybrid,” which means I am independently publishing some books, writing some for a small press and continuing to write for Harlequin. This has completely spoiled me, because when I indie publish, the choice of what goes on my cover is entirely up to me. […]
Interview with Lauren Yanovich… and #Giveaway
Valerie: Hi Lauren! Welcome to Inspy Romance. Our eager romance fans would love to get to know you a bit. Let’s start with some Quick Fives, okay? Lauren (leans forward): Yes! Let’s do it. Valerie: Five favorite foods? Lauren: Hamburgers, French fries, fried chicken, pizza, and ice cream. Valerie: Um… wow. How did you get […]
Holiday Traditions
We all have them. Those things we do at holidays, or for birthdays, or for other occasions. Things specific to us and our families or group of friends. I even wrote about one this week in my next release – though it has more to do with royal succession than birthdays or Christmas. Many of […]
Sunday Edition – November 11, 2018
Welcome to another Sunday. The days seem to fly by faster the older I get. The picture above is from the top of one mountain(in Switzerland), looking toward several others. We’d ridden a train (think choo-choo, like at an amusement park, not locomotive) to the top of the mountain. Some of the trip was made […]
It’s starting to feel a lot like Christmas…
… with all the Christmas music playing and Christmas decorations displayed in the stores. The reminders to post our overseas Christmas cards and gifts early (oops- I already missed the economy mail deadline for Australia – that’s gonna cost me!). And also, all the Christmas romance boxed sets launching! I love Christmas, though as I’m […]
Writing Retreat
Writing can be a very solitary, lonely pursuit. Even my husband, parents, and son don’t really understand the part of me that’s driven to get the stories out of my head and onto paper. I spent a lot of years going it alone. Eventually I found two local writing groups. Though some of the members […]