Becky Wade's Blog, page 6

Guest Post: Teresa Wells

I’m so excited to introduce y’all to my friend Teresa! She lives about ten minutes from me and we meet up on occasion. But the reason I’m excited is because her debut novel released yesterday! Yay! Please give her a warm Inspired by Life…and Fiction welcome!

Have you heard of the controversial crazy quilt? 

As a historical romance writer, I’m accustomed to stumbling upon surprising facts. But I was amazed to discover unbridled contempt aimed at crazy quilters in the last part of the nineteenth century.

Crazy quilts are featured in my debut novel, What Brings Us Joy. This type of quilt isn’t the kind one associates with comfort and warmth. In fact, they were created using scraps from luxury fabrics like silk, satin, and velvet. The shapes are irregular, connected by seams that are hidden by fancy embroidery stitches, backed by a single layer of plain cloth. No batting. Crazy quilts are rich in color, texture, and stunning embroidery. They are works of art.

Years ago, I inherited a crazy quilt from a great-grandmother I’d never met and knew little about, Sarah Lora Green. What she left behind in the form of a small crazy quilt told me two things: she was a talented needlewoman, and she loved her family. On her crazy quilt, stitched around the turn of the century, she featured the names or initials of her seven children. The first time I unfolded this treasure, I felt connected to her. I displayed her crazy quilt on my wall for all to see. Not the wisest thing to do when thinking about preservation of a century old artifact, hence the faded center piece.

This memento made such an impression on me, I decided to make crazy quilts part of my novel. My research led me to old newspapers posted online at the Library of Congress and Newspapers.com. I discovered that crazy quilts were quite the fad during the Victorian era. It sometimes took years to complete one, given there are so many little swatches to gather, piece together, and sew, adding a variety of embroidery stitches to embellish the piece. With the time and effort given to this art form, it’s a miracle any crazy quilts were finished.

And maybe that’s the reason for the controversy. It seems that men took a dim view of this hobby and let their objections be known. I’ve included a few examples from newspapers of the late nineteenth century.

St. Paul Daily Globe, St. Paul, Minnesota, October 26, 1884

Daily Advocate, Victoria, Texas, December, 1903

The Angola Record, Angola, New York, April 13, 1882

I was amazed. Crazy quilters were ridiculed in the most public way available at the time: the newspaper.

What kind of woman pursued this craft, knowing she’d be subject to scorn? Surely one who was strong, self-confident, and thick-skinned enough to persevere amidst open criticism. And maybe they were just a tad bit obsessed with bringing completion to their project. My heroine, Delia Truitt, is all of these plus a big dose of spunk.

But what about Sarah Lora Green? Was my great-grandmother strong? Confident? Thick-skinned enough to ignore the taunts? I’d like to think so. And if she was a little obsessive about finishing her project, that’s fine.

After all, she raised seven children in a small Texas oil town without indoor plumbing or air conditioning. She had to be tough!

A former teacher and librarian, Teresa Wells treasures a story threaded with redemption and hope. She loves people, history, and studying the Bible. Teresa is a member of Novel Academy and American Christian Fiction Writers Association, where she volunteers behind the scenes. She lives with her family outside of Dallas, Texas. What Brings Us Joy is her first novel.

1895: After losing their Georgia home, eighteen-year-old Delia Truitt and her family move to Blooming Grove, Texas, to work for a relative on a ramshackle farm. Set on helping her family dig out of their impoverished circumstances, she plans to open a dressmaker’s shop, combining her sewing skills and her keen fashion sense. But owning a business takes money she doesn’t have.

Unless she can finish her quilt in time to enter the county fair. The prize money would be just enough to open her shop. Determined and resourceful, Delia sets her sights on success—until her heart takes an unexpected detour when she meets handsome Clarence Parker.

Bent on respectability, Clarence refuses to let his past get in the way of his future happiness, especially after falling for spirited Delia Truitt. But his hopes shatter when headlines declare members of his former gang have broken out of jail and are heading his way, set on revenge. Though Clarence doesn’t regret testifying against the outlaws, he fears his future with Delia is in jeopardy. Clarence will protect her from the killers, even if it means risking their future together.

Can Clarence keep her safe? And will Delia love him after she finds out about his past?

D’Ann again: I hope y’all enjoyed getting to know a little about Teresa’s debut novel.

Had you heard the history of crazy quilts before this?

Snapshots

The pictures we take say something about us and our lives. For better or worse—and at the risk of oversharing—here are the last seven pics on my iPhone. : )

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CLIFFORD, Kelsey’s dog, with a brand new collar. We think he likes it…

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Then again, maybe not…

Yet hope remains…

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And…I think we’re good.

Clifford is what some might call a “foster fail.” But I call him a FOSTER FLOURISH! Our daughter decided to start fostering dogs, and just couldn’t give him up. They changed each other’s lives forever.

I love being able to check on the grands when they’re sleeping. Even if I can only see their feet.

Or if their sleep position resembles a chalk outline. LOL

The following image is from a screen grab of a video I watched. I saved it because it’s true. We grow so much more through adversity than easy times. If you’d like to watch the entire video, here you go!

So what have you been snapping pictures of lately? And what will they tell us about you? : )

Happy Tuesday from Nashville, friends,

Tammy

FOR KINDLE UNLIMITED FRIENDS

[image error] FIVE Civil War Romances in one KU collection

Sisters, Sisters, Sisters. . .

I’ve had sisters for 69 years now and they are still one of the greatest blessings of my life. One of the hardest things about moving away from Kansas was living far from my sisters. We see each other as often as we can, but it isn’t nearly often enough. Last week Vicky went over to Bev’s house and we had a fun FaceTime call. It made me so very grateful for modern technology. Except for the fact that I couldn’t give my sisters a hug, it was almost like being in the same room with them. We laughed and cried and laughed some more.

I gave birth to sisters ten years apart, so they were never really in school together, but my daughters both ended up at the same college in Missouri, and it thrills my heart that Tobi and Tavia are such close friends today. My sweet girls treated me to a girls day out for Mother’s Day and my birthday a couple of weeks ago and we had the best time!

We have fourteen grandkids, but among them there is only one set of sisters, Tavia’s girls. I pray that these two sweet girls enjoy each other as much as I’ve enjoyed my own sisters and as much as their mom enjoys her sister.

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Speaking of sisters, I have some fun news to share next time. For now though, I’ll give you just a little sneak peek. These fictional sisters pictured above—Phylicia, Joanna, and Britt Chandler—are making a comeback soon! Their books are getting brand new, beautiful covers designed by my talented husband, and I can’t wait to show them to you!

Have you known the blessing of having sisters—or friends who are as dear to you as sisters?

Deb’s Favorites

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We hope you are enjoying these weekly feature posts from the authors of Inspired by Life…and Fiction. We’re sharing some of our favorite things to help you get to know us a little better—and we’d love to hear your answers to these “favorites” questions in the comments below.

Favorite Candy: Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved jawbreakers because they last so long! The student union at Kansas State University sold jawbreakers by the pound, and no matter how broke I was, I always had a fund to stock up! These days, I eat Gobstoppers mini jawbreakers—the perfect size to last a while, but not too long. My grandkids know right where to find the Gobstoppers in my office or in my purse and they make a beeline for their favorite color whenever they visit.

Favorite Sport (to watch or play): I am not athletic in the least, but our four kids all played multiple sports in high school (and some of them in college) so it’s hard to choose just one favorite. But I think basketball is my favorite sport to watch. It’s the game I understand best, and I love the teamwork involved. Our family often plays a game of pickup basketball wherever we’re gathered.

Favorite Scripture Verse: 3 John 1:4 “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” I think John was talking about his spiritual children in this verse, but I apply it to my own sons and daughters, who have all trusted Jesus for their salvation. There is truly no greater joy than seeing them live out their faith in Christ in their own families and occupations.

Anniversary Gratitude

This post will “go live” tomorrow, July 11th. But as I’m writing this, it’s July 10th. Our anniversary!

Does it sometimes feel like your phone is spooky smart in its knowledge of you? It sometimes feels that way to me like it did when my photos app just showed me a collection of pictures featuring me and His Highness. It was as if it knew our anniversary had arrived. In this case, I’m glad for my phone’s spooky smartness because I had a great time looking at the images and remembering several of our adventures over the last decade or so.

During one of our hikes on a recent family vacation, the conversation I was having with two of my nieces swung to marriage. As someone who has now been married for more than thirty years, my encouragement to them was to look for a man of faith. A man who is genuinely good-hearted. A man not prone to bouts of anger or moods. A man who’s convinced that their girlfriend/then fiancee/then wife is wonderful. A man who’s also a friend they get along with easily. And if that man has a sense of humor–giant bonus.

By the grace of God, the man I married when I was twenty-one years old is all of those things.

I’m filled with gratitude on this anniversary. For him and for the life and children we share. I jokingly nicknamed him His Highness on social media long ago because A) I didn’t want to share his real name publicly and B) because he just might be a wee bit high maintenance. But the truth is that he’s kept me laughing and his love has been steadfast.

“Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Try always to be led along together by the Holy Spirit and so be at peace with one another.” -Ephesians 4:2-3

Summer Getaways to Mackinac Island & Sale

Does your family have a favorite place that it loves to visit? A place you return to on a cycle whether it’s every year or every few years?

Labor Day weekend a few years ago our family made the 7.5 hour drive from Indiana up the length of Michigan to Mackinac Island. This was our fourth visit to the island, but the first time we didn’t have an infant or toddler. We laughed and hiked and biked and shopped and had an all around great time connecting. That summer we hadn’t been able to get away, all six of us, so that Labor Day was my desperate attempt to squeeze in a few days, knowing that someday soon those would be very hard to come by. The best sign was the way the kids started talking on the drive home about when we’d go back. Love it!

The Island Bookstore on Mackinac had a stack of Deadly Secrets on Mackinac Island on the shelves, so of course I offered to sign them. I’ve also had a couple of booksignings at that store over the years. If you ever find yourself on Mackinac, I highly recommend spending some time in that charming spot. So many great books! 

This is my clan a few years ago on the island. It’s hard to believe that the first time we visited our oldest was four and the tall kid on the right was one — and not a fan of riding the burly cart. Now everyone bikes around the island. Best story: someone asking how long the bike ride is: 8.2 miles. They looked at the clerk and asked, and how far is it if you go the other direction? (Insert face palm–and no, it was no one in my family ).

For such a small island, there is so much natural beauty. I don’t think I could ever get tired of escaping there for a long weekend. The above photo is of Arch Rock. You can reach it by hiking or biking. Since we often rent tandem bikes, we stay on the highway that goes along the shoreline. That leads to great hikes to reach sites like this. Other than watching out for horse patties…it’s a delightful way to get some exercise and enjoy time in creation. It’s always amazing how much slower life feels when you don’t have a car to get you around. And other than the two or three blocks right by where the ferries dock, it’s easy to find space to walk and enjoy the shops and homes.

The homes on the island are beautiful like this one. From the first visit I started thinking about the type of book I could write set there. It ended up being a romantic suspense, with the heroine being a lawyer who’s been called back home. I think it would be the perfect place for a romantic comedy, too.

This is one of my favorite photo, from our pause on the bike ride. There is something peaceful about getting out of the high tourist area and onto the back side of the island. The traffic is very light, and the peace of the waves crashing against the rocks immense.

Through July 12th, Deadly Secrets on Mackinac Island, my book set on this little piece of paradise, is on ebook sale for $1.99. You can buy it from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple or on my website (I make more if you buy it direct from me. I love this second chance romance that requires the heroine to confront secrets from her past. You can find links to all the platforms on my website here.

Community and Connection

Hi friends, 

Thanks so much for joining me today! 

Stories entertain, but they do so much more. They inspire hope, help us believe in second chances, live often vicariously through the characters, and in some cases, even find healing within the pages. 

Christian fiction, in particular, has a special gift. It brings us together within our shared faith and love of stories. My favorite aspect is seeing the community it fosters and the connection among readers and writers it creates. Together we share struggles, help one another persevere in hard times, celebrate the good, and grow in our faith and friendships. 

The reader community has exploded over the last decade. No longer do we all read and enjoy stories on our own. No, we share them with fellow readers. We talk about favorite characters, why we love them, and sometimes wear book boyfriend shirts.  

We’ve created online groups where we chat about all aspects of the stories we read—who did it, why they did it, when we figured it out, or how we didn’t see it coming in a suspense novel. We recommend books, share author interviews, and coordinate when we might see each other in person. 

Which leads to in-person reading events. Christian Fiction Readers Retreat was the first reader event I attended for Christian fiction readers and writers, and it was magical. I got to hug my writer friends, put faces to online names, and make new friends. Several of my dearest friends I’ve met at reading events or through the reading community. I’m so blessed by it. 

The same is true of writer events. We get to celebrate the wins together, share the struggles we face, brainstorm stories, and deepen friendships. Writer retreats are wonderful for this. I love the retreats I host for writers twice a year (one for unpublished and one for published authors) because of all these reasons. There’s just something about sharing a common love of stories, how God works through Christian fiction, and how stories often reflect what we’re going through or have gone through in our lives. Being together in person has such an added bonus. You get to chat late into the night, laugh together, shed some tears, and bond. 

Christian fiction readers and writers have a bonded community rooted in the love and power of story and in our shared faith.

Reader Question : 

Where’s your favorite place to connect with fellow readers and/or writers? 

Blessings, 

Dani

Research Tidbits

I love historical writing because I love research–especially once I begin to visualize my characters in their local environments. I’m currently writing the stories of Rachel, Leah, and Jacob, and have been sharing the results of some of my research with my Facebook readers. They’ve enjoyed it so much I thought I might share some tidbits with you.

First, how old was Jacob when he married Leah and Rachel (who, according to Jewish tradition, were twins)? Answers vary, but it’s safe to say he was elderly by modern standards. But by ancient standards, men were still active and fathering children after they had passed 100 (remember Abraham?), so many Bible scholars believe Jacob was in his seventies when he married Rachel and Leah.

The figure is derived from several scriptures.

1. We know that Jacob died at age 147 (Gen. 47:28).

2. We know that Jacob went to Egypt (to join Joseph) when he was 130 (Gen. 47:9).

3. When Jacob entered Egypt, Joseph was about 39, because he started working for Pharaoh at age 30. By the time Jacob joined him, they had experienced the seven years of plenty and two years of famine (Gen. 41:46ff).

4. So Jacob’s 130 years minus Joseph’s 39 means that Jacob was 91 when Joseph was born.

5. Jacob wanted to leave Haran right after Joseph’s birth, but Laban convinced him to stay for another six years (Gen. 30:25-26, Gen. 31:41). So when Jacob finally left Haran, Joseph was around six and Jacob had been in the land twenty years. If Jacob was 91 when Joseph was born, he would have been 97 when he finally left Haran and 77 when he met Rachel.

We might assume that Jacob married at age 40, like Esau, but nothing in Scripture supports that timeline. It is more logical to reason that Isaac, supposing he was near death at age 137 (when Jacob and Esau would have been 77), decided then to give his blessing to his sons, thus setting the stage for Jacob’s flight to Haran to escape Esau’s rage.

Here’s another: What on earth was going on with Jacob and those branches and the livestock? (Genesis 30:35-ff.) I had to do some digging, but here’s the explanation I found and it works for me.

Jacob put branches in the watering troughs of the sheep and goats to increase his herds . . . and here’s how it worked. Laban thought he was getting a great deal when Jacob asked for the spotted goats and spotted and dark sheep, since most of Laban’s flock were white sheep and solid-colored goats. By having his sons remove the spotted/dark animals from his flock, Laban thought he was guaranteeing that his flock would not reproduce spotted or dark-colored animals.

But though Laban tried to cheat Jacob, God intervened and thwarted Laban’s intention. Jacob took fresh branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees, peeled portions of them, and put them in the animals’ watering troughs, where the sun warmed the water and made a sort of an herbal tea. Science has demonstrated that poplar supplementation increases the birth rates of animals by 20-30 percent. Sweet Almond is known to treat hemorrhage, kidney stones, increase mothers’ milk, and heal other various diseases. The bark of the Oriental Plane tree acts as an anti-inflammatory.

God sent Jacob a dream (Gen. 31:11) and showed him that the animals going up to drink in [Laban’s] flock were striped, spotted, and speckled, even though Jacob knew they were all solid colors, because the spotted/speckled animals had been removed. This was God’s way of showing Jacob that those animals carried the genes for striped, spotted, and speckled offspring. And sure enough, Laban’s solid-color flocks produced all kinds of stripped, spotted, and speckled babies.

What about those verses that talk about how he “set the faces of the flocks toward the striped ones?” This wasn’t some magical or supernatural trick, though God certainly worked to prosper Jacob. This is describing how Jacob ensured that the healthiest of Laban’s flock had healthy babies.

I’m no farmer, but I’ve learned this much: after a female animal has a baby, it will eventually go into heat again, even though the mother is still focused on caring for her baby. So Jacob allowed the healthiest rams, ewes, and babies access to the drinking troughs, and he put the babies on one side of the troughs, so their mothers would focus on them as they drank from the trough. While the mothers were drinking and watching their babies, the rams would come up from behind and breed with them for the next season.

Then Jacob would turn those animals out, remove the sticks from the troughs, pour in fresh water, and allow Laban’s weaker animals into the pen to drink.

This method—based on sound scientific knowledge, genetics, and the work of God, allowed Jacob to prosper far more than Laban expected. I’m sure that after the striped and spotted babies were weaned, they were removed from Laban’s flock and transported to the pasture where Jacob kept his flocks of striped, spotted, and speckled sheep and goats. Through trade with other herdsmen, over that six-year period he also accumulated cattle, camels, and servants (Gen. 31:18).

Not bad for people who had not yet discovered genetics!

Until next time,

Angie

D’Ann’s Favorites

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We hope you are enjoying these weekly feature posts from the authors of Inspired by Life…and Fiction. We’re sharing some of our favorite things to help you get to know us a little better—and we’d love to hear your answers to these “favorites” questions in the comments below.

Favorite Candy: This is hard. I love candy! But I guess I’d have to say Twix bars. They have it all—chocolate, caramel, and a shortbread cookie. Yum.

Favorite Sport (to watch or play): Another tough one! The truth is, my favorites sports to watch were the ones my kids were playing at any given time! In that light, I do still love to watch basketball when my son is coaching. But I’d have to say my favorite right now is my own sport—pickleball. I have a friend with a court on her property out in the country so I don’t have to go make a fool of myself on a public court. I just get to play and have fun with other ladies my age-ish. The bonus? My sister often plays with that group, too. 

 
Favorite Scripture Verse: And the hardest of all! How to pick just one? So I’ll share the one that I’ve been camped out on for awhile now. 

Fireworks and Freedom

In case you don’t know it, most of the books I’ve written are set in Idaho. I love my state. I’m a native Idahoan and have lived here all my life.

There’s something uniquely stirring about celebrating the Fourth of July in Idaho. Maybe it’s the way the mountains frame the fireworks, the echo of cowboy boots on parade routes, or the sight of children waving flags beneath endless blue skies. In the Gem State, we don’t celebrate Independence Day just to commemorate history. We try to live it out in the everyday.

From the quiet towns nestled in our mountains to the wide ranches of the Snake River Plain, Idaho has always held a fierce sense of independence. The men and women who homesteaded here weren’t just chasing dreams. They were building futures through grit, grace, and God’s provision. Those traits have been passed down through the generations.

Most Idahoans try to remember that freedom is never free. It was bought with courage, sealed with sacrifice, and preserved through generations. And while our barbecues sizzle and our flags fly, we also pause to give thanks—for those who serve, for the liberties we hold dear, and for the quiet blessings of life.

However you spend it and no matter where you live in this vast nation, may this Independence Day remind you of the heritage we share and the hope we carry into the future. As Scripture tells us, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17). And here in Idaho, under a canopy of fireworks and faith, we can feel that freedom deeply.

Happy Independence Day—from my corner of America to yours.

~robin