Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as “books”
I sat across from my trusted friend Wise Guy recently and told him, “My heart seems smaller.” Had unrelenting circumstances — mine and others’ close to me — turned me into some emotional Grinch and downsized my heart? As I talked some and listened more, I realized that yes, fear had crept in and silenced me … that unknowingly I …
Mention “theme,” and most people are transported back to English class, when the teacher asked, “What is the theme of this book?” Some of us had fun with this question about the central idea in a novel or short story or poem or play, and some of us started counting the days until summer vacation. And then some of …
Happy December, friends! Yes, I’m still on my social media break for the month of December, but … … a few weeks back (like in October), some dear author-friends and I decided to have a Snow Day Giveaway from December 4-12. I wanted to tell you all about that now so you had a chance to enter the giveaway for …
So … the robot. I came upon him while walking with my husband and youngest daughter during a a foggy day in Carlsbad, California last summer. Some ingenious artist painted him on the side of a building. And yes, this painting told a story. You can come upon stories in the most unlikely places. We expect them within the covers …
All teams are made up of individuals. Sport teams. Business teams. Ministry teams. But if the team’s focus is on all the separate people who make up the team instead of the overall goal of the team, the group will stall out. You can’t get anywhere if you’re divided by the wants of a variety of different people. Individuals are chosen for …
There are many definitions of success, but this one by Dr. Kelly Flanagan tops my list: “… success is what happens when you make your true self your lived self.” We can accomplish so many things — academically, professionally, personally — but unless we are being true to ourselves, all our victories ring hollow. We can allow someone to place …
This time of year overflows with expectancy. Yes, we’re all counting down the days until Christmas morning, when we’re with friends and family. When we can finally dig into our stockings and tear into the brightly wrapped presents. Sit back and savor the sound of laughter and the presence of our loved ones. But if we push past the expectancy …
It’s the first day of December and what better way to begin the holiday season than with a giveaway? The giveaway is appropriately named “The 12 Authors of Christmas” because 11 writing friends and I put together a fun prize package. As I looked at all the smiling faces on the festive graphic designed by the oh-so talented Angie Dicken, …
There are books everywhere in my house. When e-readers came on the scene, my husband encouraged me to get one. His hope? That the multiple To Be Read (TBR) piles would disappear into virtual oblivion. Um, no. That did not happen. My Kindle is loaded and ready to go on trips with me … and the TBR piles continue to …
Christmas can get awfully crowded — filled up to overflowing by a busy schedule. Things to do. People to see. Presents to buy and wrap. Cards to address and mail — or maybe design online and email. Traditions to be kept or begun. And somewhere in the midst of all the doing, we want to remember the reason for the …
