Blog
From soya beans and a septic system to swatting mosquitoes in a schoolhouse: Connecting with my rural roots
There was an election in my Canadian province last week and I worked at a polling station to help the democratic process run smoothly. As well as a fun day meeting new people, it was also a journey into my own past and Canadian rural life. Smartphones, soya beans and...
Living and writing about mothers and daughters
Before English Rose was born, I didn’t know whether I was having a boy or a girl. While I’d have loved a son as much as a daughter, part of me was relieved when the doctor announced the baby was a girl. As an only child with four girl cousins, I knew little about...
Back to bicycling..and a special 0.99 cent/pence deal on ‘The Sweetheart Locket’
As some of you know, I bought a bicycle in March, my first one in over twenty years. However, owing to a long and harsh winter, including snow in the last week of April, I wasn’t able to ride my new bike until last weekend. Now, though, I’m trying to go for a short...
Life lessons from fiction
In her reader Facebook group, The Petal Garden, author friend Rosey Lee posts uplifting, feel-good content that brightens my day and makes me think too. One of Rosey's recent posts led me to reflect about life lessons and I realized many of mine have come from reading...
A sale, a book scene & ‘one of those weeks’
It’s been 'one of those weeks' for me. As such, this blog post is one of short updates but, I hope, some of you also find sweet. Ebook sale on The Sweetheart Locket First, I want to let my UK readers know that for a limited time the Kindle edition of The Sweetheart...
My year to ‘grow’: Books, a name & living my word for 2022
Regular blog readers know each year I choose a word to live by. This year my word is ‘grow.’ From January to March, here’s how I ‘grew.’ Writing growth In the last three months, I’ve had two new books published, Montana Reunion from Harlequin Heartwarming and The...
‘The Sweetheart Locket’ is out now: Hope, heart, heroism & humanity for troubled times
The Sweetheart Locket, my women’s and historical fiction debut is out in ebook today. Published by a British publisher, Orion Dash, it’s also my British debut and the first book I’ve written set mostly in England. When I started writing this story in 2019, I could...
Book news, a podcast & Jen recommends bookish travel
In a pause from my usual type of blog post, this week I’m sharing book news, a podcast interview and, since many of us, like me, still can’t travel far in real life, I also have a recommendation for bookish armchair travel. My podcast debut Last month, I took part in...
Valentine’s Day 2022: Cards, candy and a cadaver
Heading towards our twenty-sixth wedding anniversary, these days Tech Guy and I don’t usually make a fuss over Valentine’s Day. While we celebrate our love, we don’t typically do so on February 14 when restaurants are busy, flowers over-priced and there’s unspoken...
Photo by Robin Spencer, Spencer Studio