The first question folks often ask a novelist is about their book’s inspirations. How did you come up with the idea? Is this a true story about you? What inspired the book? Often I tell people a fictional story is a compilation of truth and made up details. I might find a person’s …
Category Archives: Blogging
When Your Main Character Hijacks Your Blog
Photo by Jake Thacker on Unsplash My name is Eva Gordon, and I may have memory loss, but I can still read. And I’ve read all those harsh words people have used to describe me in that book: cantankerous, hard-edged, stubborn, irascible, unpleasant. At least one person tacked on that the author portrayed me with “grace and …
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An Instrument of Peace
I still own the same sewing machine that once belonged to my grandmother and great grandmother. The small black Singer machine assisted me with making childhood clothes, my wedding dress, and curtains hanging today in one of our rooms. In the past, when people saw my machine, they often asked, “Is it a toy?” No, …
The Keys to Bonhoeffer’s Haus
Photo by Brian Ho on Unsplash Several years ago, I was deeply influenced by a biography I read with a friend about German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer. I am now a lifelong admirer of the man. When I heard about Laura Fabrycky’s new book, The Keys to Bonhoeffer’s Haus, I knew I needed to read it. And …
Finding Purpose in Jail
Photo by Ye Jinghan on Unsplash “There is only one thing that I dread: not to be worthy of my sufferings.” Fyodor Dostoevski My husband and I go to jail weekly. One night a week we enter a maximum-security facility, get searched and patted down, and led deep into the bowels of the place to be locked …
A New Madeleine L’Engle Biography
Many years ago during my season as a young mother, I felt a deep longing for older women mentors. If those mentors were writers, all the better. Unfortunately, I didn’t know other wordsmiths at the time and felt isolated by my longing for people who could speak to me about art, faith, and the importance …
My Ditzy Self
prateek-katyal-_YzGQvASeMk-unsplash.jpg I have a ditzy side. I like to think it’s endearing, but maybe it’s just annoying to certain people close to me. In this high-tech world, many opportunities arise for ditzy people like me to make mistakes. Several times I have intended to write a text message to my husband only to discover …
Confessions of a Suburban Mom – Part One
While writing my suburban mom confession, I need to confess to writing a long and unwieldy blog post. Whenever you combine suburban guilt and mother guilt, things get complicated, so I’m making this a two-part post. This is my confession: I chose to raise my four sons in the safety of suburban life. I …
Birthday Reflections: Waiting and Continuing
I turn another year older today, another year closer to a very big number that ends in zero arriving in 2018. We’ll hold off talking about that birthday until next year. All wrapped up in my birthday package this year comes the surprise fact that getting older gets easier. In fact, these bigger birthdays are …
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